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Nancy Pelosi says she will not seek re-election to House Democrats' top job

Updated / Thursday, 17 Nov 2022 23:34

US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced that she will not seek re-election to the leadership of the Democratic caucus.

Her move makes way for a younger generation of leadership in the party and as conservative Republicans take control of the chamber in January.

Ms Pelosi, 82, was elected to Congress in 1987 and first became speaker in 2007 and presided over both impeachments of Donald Trump during her second stint in the role, has previously indicated her time as a lawmaker might be up.

Ms Pelosi, a liberal from California who has served two stints as speaker, said she will remain in Congress, representing San Francisco in the House as she has done for 35 years.

Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York may seek to take her place as the top Democrat in the House. Mr Jeffries would be the first black lawmaker to lead one of the major parties' caucuses in Congress.

Ms Pelosi received cheers from her fellow Democrats as she took her place in the House chamber to make the announcement and throughout her remarks.

She called the House chamber "sacred ground" and the "heart of American democracy".

She recalled visiting the Capitol for the first time as a child when her father was sworn in as a House member. She said that the chamber represented "the people's house" and had done "the people's work".

"American democracy is majestic but it is fragile. Many of us here have witnessed our fragility firsthand, tragically in this chamber. And so democracy must be forever defended from forces that wish it harm," Ms Pelosi said, alluding to the attack on the Capitol last year by former President Donald Trump's supporters.

"We the people - one country, one destiny," she added.

Ms Pelosi also noted the increase in the number of women serving in the House since she first joined it. She thanked her family and staff.

"A new day is dawning on the horizon," Ms Pelosi added.

Currently second in line of succession to President Joe Biden, Ms Pelosi said last week her final decision on her career - should Democrats lose the House - would be influenced by the brutal attack on her elderly husband in the run-up to the 8 November midterms.

Paul Pelosi, who is also aged 82, was left hospitalised with serious injuries after an intruder - possibly looking for the speaker - broke into their San Francisco home and attacked him with a hammer.

Nancy Pelosi said her final decision will be influenced by the attack on her husband Paul

'A true friend of Ireland'

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has paid tribute to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, calling her a "true friend of Ireland".

"I want to wish you @SpeakerPelosi all the very best in future," Mr Martin posted on Twitter.

"A true friend to Ireland, we thank you for all you've done, and continue to do, to promote peace and progress on this island."

President Biden said that history will note Ms Pelosi is the "most consequential Speaker of the House of Representatives in our history".

In a statement this evening, Mr Biden said that Ms Pelosi is a "fierce defender of democracy through our laws, history will also note her fierceness and resolve to protect our democracy from the violent, deadly insurrection of 6 January".

"Nancy Pelosi is first, last, and always for the people," the statement added.

"As a nation, we owe her a deep debt of gratitude for her service, her patriotism, and above all, her absolute dignity."

Speaker vote looms

Mr McCarthy said for his part that "Americans are ready for a new direction, and House Republicans are ready to deliver".

Republican Kevin McCarthy won his party's leadership vote by secret ballot

And House Republicans immediately signalled they would wield their new power to make Mr Biden's life more difficult - convening a press conference to announce plans to investigate the "national security" implications of the president's family business connections.

With inflation surging and Mr Biden's popularity ratings cratering, Republicans had hoped to see a "red wave" wash over America, giving them control of both houses and hence an effective block over most of Mr Biden's legislative plans.

But instead, Democratic voters - galvanised by the Supreme Court's overturning of abortion rights and wary of Trump-endorsed candidates who openly rejected the result of the 2020 presidential election - turned out in force.

And Republicans lost ground with candidates rejected by moderate voters as too extreme.

Mr Biden's party secured an unassailable majority in the upper chamber with 50 seats plus Vice President Kamala Harris' tie-breaking vote, and a Senate runoff in Georgia could yet see the Democrats improve their majority in the upper house.

The Senate oversees the confirmation of federal judges and cabinet members, and having the 100-seat body in his corner will be a major boon for Mr Biden.

Meanwhile on Tuesday, Mr McCarthy won his party's leadership vote by secret ballot, putting him in prime position to be the next speaker.

But potential far-right defections could yet complicate the 57-year-old's path when the House of Representatives' 435 newly elected members - Democrats and Republicans - choose their new speaker in January.

Eyes on the presidential race

For the 2024 race, some conservative Republican voters voiced fatigue with Donald Trump

While the midterms were all about elections for the US Congress, state governors, and other local offices, hovering over it all was the 2024 US presidential race.

Mr Trump, who still polls as the top choice among Republicans for the party's presidential nomination, nevertheless suffered a series of setbacks as far-right candidates he either recruited or became allied with performed poorly on 8 November.

Some conservative Republican voters voiced fatigue with Mr Trump.

At the same time, Ron DeSantis coasted to a second term as governor of Florida, defeating Democratic opponent Charlie Crist by nearly 20 percentage points.

Mr Trump reportedly was seething over the high marks political pundits were doling out to Mr DeSantis, seen as a potential challenger to Mr Trump in the 2024 field of Republican presidential candidates.

The 2024 election will immediately influence many of the legislative decisions House Republicans pursue as they flex their muscles with a new-found majority, however narrow.

They have publicly talked about seeking cost savings in the Social Security and Medicare safety-net programmes and making permanent 2017-enacted tax cuts that are due to expire.

Conservatives are threatening to hold back on a needed debt-limit increase next year unless significant spending reductions are achieved.

"It's critical that we're prepared to use the leverage we have," far-right House Freedom Caucus Chairman Scott Perry told Reuters last month.

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Source: AFP/Reuters