Culture3 min
Hakeem Jeffries Set for Jan. 3 Speaker Vote, Could Be First Black House Speaker
Democrats' return to House majority puts Jeffries on track to lead the chamber and make history, with a mandate to tackle costs and oversight of the Trump administration.
Hakeem Jeffries is poised to make history. The House Democratic leader faces a full chamber vote for Speaker when the new Congress convenes on Jan. 3, after Democrats won back majority control in the midterm elections. If colleagues elect him, Jeffries would become the first Black Speaker of the US House.
The job is a big one. The Speaker sits second in the line of presidential succession, and it is the only top congressional post that the US Constitution requires. Whoever holds it sets the House agenda, runs floor debates and decides which bills reach a vote. Jeffries would take the gavel in the domed Capitol, a building that enslaved African Americans helped construct. For supporters, that detail gives the moment extra weight, linking a 21st-century leadership change to the Reconstruction era that followed the Civil War and brought the first Black American into the House.
At a Democratic watch party in Washington, Jeffries drew cheers of 'Speaker! Speaker!' He framed the win as a national moment rather than a party one, and he promised to deliver change for voters who sent Democrats back to power.
In a letter to House Democrats, Jeffries made his interest in the post clear and laid out three priorities for the next Congress: affordability, accountability and American values. He also promised a 100-day agenda. Plans include steps to lower everyday living costs, along with oversight and investigations aimed at holding the Trump administration to account. Impeachment has been raised as one possible path. Jeffries would replace Republican Speaker Mike Johnson, and Democrats would then face President Donald Trump's final two years in office.
Jeffries is no stranger to the spotlight. The New York University-educated lawyer has represented New York in Congress since 2013 and is the highest-ranking Black elected official in the country. He has also been a frequent target of Trump, who has mocked him publicly and privately, including with a doctored image of Jeffries in a sombrero.
Jeffries would not govern alone. He is expected to work with Rep. Katherine Clark, who is set to become majority leader, and Rep. Pete Aguilar, who is set to become majority whip. The three have long operated as a close, next-generation leadership team. Nancy Pelosi, who stepped aside as leader after Democrats' 2022 losses, would make Jeffries the first Democratic Speaker since her.
The challenges start quickly. The House is often hard to manage, and the new Democratic majority includes newer members pushing the party further left, some backed by the Democratic Socialists of America. The more moderate New Democrat Coalition is still expected to be the largest caucus. Jeffries and his team want to show voters that Democrats can govern without the infighting that hobbled Johnson's narrow GOP majority. Allies describe him as collaborative and a careful listener, while critics argue he can be slow to respond during fast-moving crises.
Voters are focused on pocketbook issues, including rising healthcare costs, higher gas prices and grocery bills. Foreign policy is also likely to shape the agenda, from the war in Iran to Trump's dealings with Vladimir Putin over Ukraine. For readers, the Jan. 3 vote is the first test of whether Democrats can turn a campaign message into laws. Source: GoodReturns.
