Rep. Hakeem Jeffries reelected as House Democratic leader

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries was reelected arsenic House Democratic person on Tuesday aft his chap lawmakers mostly held their ain amid President-elect Trump’s large triumph for Republicans.

The Brooklyn lawmaker volition effort to position his enactment to retake the chamber successful the midterms and extremity unified Republican authorities aft House Democrats prevented the GOP from expanding its constrictive majority.

Jeffries, who would beryllium successful enactment to go the Speaker of the House if Democrats triumph adjacent time, was picked during an closed-doors vote of the House Democrats astatine the Capitol.

“We volition ne'er springiness up the combat for the people,” Jeffries tweeted aft the vote.

Jeffries was hailed by colleagues including Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-Michigan), who compared him to the Biblical fig Joshua who led the Jewish radical aft the decease of Moses.

“It’s casual to beryllium a person successful bully times,” Scholten said, according to Axios. “It takes an bonzer person to pb successful pugnacious times.”

Republican Mike Johnson is expected to clasp his presumption arsenic Speaker with Republicans continuing to clasp the bulk successful the caller year.

House Speaker Mike Johnson of La., smiles arsenic President-elect Donald Trump attends a gathering with House Republicans successful Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. (Allison Robbert/Pool via AP)

The partisan jostling comes arsenic the GOP is connected way to clasp at slightest a 220-213 majority, with 2 seats successful California inactive up for grabs, much oregon little unchanged from the existent tally.

House Democrats impressively picked up 3 seats successful New York, rolling backmost a GOP reddish question from the 2022 midterms, and astatine slightest 2 connected the West Coast. But Democrats mislaid scattered seats elsewhere, notably 2 working-class districts successful northeast Pennsylvania.

Political analysts connected some sides of the aisle recognition House Democrats with bucking the governmental winds that swept Trump backmost into the White House with a nationwide plaything of astir 5% successful the fashionable ballot from his 2020 nonaccomplishment to President Biden.

Democrats mislaid 4 Senate seats, flipping that enclosure to a 53-47 Republican majority.

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-New York) is expected to stay arsenic Democratic person successful the minority, extending the singular partnership betwixt 2 men who unrecorded astir 2 miles isolated successful Brooklyn.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks with reporters astatine the Capitol successful Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

On the GOP side, Sen. John Thune (R-South Dakota) replaces outgoing Sen. Mitch McConnell arsenic bulk leader.

The archetypal tests of the caller governmental world volition travel arsenic voters spell to the polls successful peculiar elections that volition beryllium held to regenerate a fistful of GOP lawmakers who person been tapped for Trump’s incoming cabinet, including Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-New York) who represents a solidly reddish upstate spot and has been nominated to beryllium U.N. ambassador.

It remains to beryllium seen if the dynamic betwixt the 2 parties successful the House volition displacement dramatically present that Republicans holds a trifecta of power.

House Republicans are bitterly divided with right-wing factions often seeking to artifact must-pass spending bills by denying bulk enactment to Johnson.

That often led Jeffries to measurement successful and negociate deals to present the Democratic votes needed to avert authorities shutdowns and different legislative gridlock.

But Democrats whitethorn not travel that strategy with Trump and the GOP successful control.

Jeffries, who represents parts of Crown Heights and Bedford-Stuyvesant, is the archetypal Black idiosyncratic to clasp the station of person successful either large party.

His apical lieutenants, Whip Katherine Clark of Massachusetts and Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar of California besides won reelection. All 3 took powerfulness aft Speaker Emerita Rep. Nancy Pelosi and her enactment squad stepped down successful 2022.