A few weeks after the national election, House Democrats are holding their own to officially choose who will lead the party in the upcoming 117th Congress.
Democrats renominated their top leaders on Wednesday — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland and House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn of South Carolina — all who ran unopposed. The full vote on leadership takes place on the chamber floor in January.
In addition, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries ran unopposed for a second term as House Democratic Caucus Chair. He was reelected and will oversee this week’s elections.
The leadership nominations are marked by a less-than-ideal outcome for the Democrats at the polls earlier this month, when the caucus lost at least eight seats in the House. A handful of House races have yet to be called.
Speaking to reporters Wednesday afternoon, Speaker Pelosi and her fellow Democratic leaders all preached unity.
“America’s working families — that is what unifies us,” Pelosi said. “I’m thrilled, I’m excited and I can’t wait to be working with a new President of the United States.”
Pelosi also addressed the party’s losses, saying, “Elections are about the future.”
“We are sad to have lost the members we had. We’re ready to go again, we’re preparing for that …. We just see the next election right on the horizon,” she added.
Speaker Pelosi didn’t directly answer whether the 117th Congress would be her last term, saying she did not originally expect to serve again this time around. She did say she would abide by any term limits set for her role.
On Wednesday, Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA) won the fourth top spot of assistant speaker. She was already part of democratic leadership as vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus.
“I can tell you this about our caucus: We are the guardians of people’s hopes and aspirations. And we are going to be the unified engine for change,” Rep. Clark said Wednesday. “We are going to see and help the American people with the pain they’re suffering, through the loss of life and livelihood from this pandemic.”
Democrats will gather virtually once again on Thursday for the remaining nominations and votes, which include the elections for four open spots on the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee and the caucus vice chair position.
Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) and Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL) are both running for caucus vice chair, another core leadership position. The race is close, with diversity at the forefront.
If elected, Rep. Aguilar would hold the highest position among Latinos in the House, and Rep. Kelly would be the first Black woman elected to House Democratic leadership.
One key remaining election — to replace Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair Cheri Bustos, who stepped down this month — will take place on Nov. 30. Both Rep. Sean Maloney (D-NY) and Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-CA) are in the running.
The freshman Democrats will also select their representative later this year.
On the Republican side of the House, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was reelected on Tuesday, as were House Republican Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) and chair of the House Republican Conference Liz Cheney (R-WY).