Rep. Hakeem Jeffries chosen to succeed Pelosi as leader of House Democrats

Hakeem Jeffries.
(Image credit: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

House Democrats on Wednesday elected Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.) to succeed longtime House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) as leader of their caucus, cementing a huge "generational change" ahead of the upcoming congressional term, The Washington Post writes.

Jeffries will serve as minority leader, and is the first Black leader of a party in Congress, Axios reports; he's also the first new Democratic leader in 20 years. Pelosi announced her retirement from House leadership earlier this month after an intruder broke into her home and attacked her husband.

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Brigid Kennedy

Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.