Long-time San Francisco Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), 80, secured her fourth term as Speaker of the House of Representatives on Sunday afternoon when the 117th Congress, which will serve until 2023, convened for the first day of the new session in Washington, DC.
Pelosi, who has served in Congress since the 1980s, received 216 votes for speaker, seven more votes than the runner-up, Congressman Kevin McCarthy (R-CA). Since she declared her intent to run for speaker again, Pelosi has not drawn any public challenges from other members of the caucus, although some have previously refused to disclose how they would vote.
Despite post-election turmoil within the Democratic caucus, only two Democrats ultimately defected and voted to change up who should serve as the top Democrat in the House. Congressman Conor Lamb, of Pennsylvania, voted for Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), and Congressman Jared Golden, of Maine, voted for Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL). Three Democrats voted “present” in the speaker election, two of whom voted for someone other than Pelosi in the 2019 speaker election, and the other of whom voted “present” in the 2019 speaker election.
All of the members of the progressive “Squad” voted for Pelosi, including the two newest members, Congresswoman Cori Bush (D-MO) and Congressman Jamal Bowman (D-NY). Bush and Bowman recently suggested they needed to consult with their communities before voting, and remained elusive about how they planned to vote.
Congressman Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), who has served as House minority leader since 2019, secured the second-most votes in the speaker election, having drawn 209 votes from within the Republican caucus, seven fewer votes than Pelosi.
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