The American Democrats have had a generational change at the top and have elected Hakeem Jeffries (52) as the first black party leader in the House of Representatives. He was elected to the Congressional Chamber by his fellow party members on Wednesday after Nancy Pelosi (82) announced her departure. The New York MP was already a member of the group’s executive committee and had announced after the congressional elections that he wanted to lead the Democrats in the House of Representatives in the future.
The call for a generational change has been louder within the party lately. Time and time again, members of parliament have spoken out against Pelosi and called for change and rejuvenation. Critics saw her as a representative of the old guard and called for her to give way to someone younger after so many years in Congress and at the head of her faction. However, her successor will have less power because the Democrats lost their majority in the House of Representatives in the midterm elections.
As a result, Jeffries will run his party as a minority in the House of Representatives – and not as “Speaker of the House”, i.e. Speaker of the House of Representatives. A Republican will hold that position. Republican lawmakers have nominated Kevin McCarthy, 57, as their nominee to preside over the House of Representatives — the vote is due in early January. However, McCarthy shouldn’t have it as easy as Jeffries, behind whom Democrats have rallied in relative unity. Republican McCarthy, on the other hand, has to fear dissenters – a problem given his party’s narrow majority in the House of Representatives. (SDA/chs)