Hakeem Jeffries Set to Lead House as Speaker

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries will likely become the first Black speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Following a decisive win for Democrats in the midterm elections, Jeffries appears certain to secure the role. He has served in the House since 2013 and currently holds the title of minority leader. As speaker, he would rank second in the presidential line of succession, directly behind the vice president.

Jeffries has held leadership positions in the House since 2022, becoming the first Black politician to lead either party in either chamber of Congress. His career in Washington spans nearly 14 years. During that time, he moved from a rank-and-file member focused on criminal justice to a key lieutenant under former Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California. His path to the top required managing a diverse and often fractious House Democratic caucus.

The new leader faces the task of fulfilling campaign promises to voters who demanded change. Jeffries stated on Tuesday night that House Democrats understand the need to deliver dramatic change. He noted that things are broken and that the new Congress must put the American people first.

Jeffries represents parts of Brooklyn, New York, where he was born and raised. Before entering politics, he worked as a private lawyer. He credits a legal clinic in law school for sparking his interest in criminal justice reform. He said in a 2023 interview with NY1 that he wanted to address the broken criminal justice system if given the opportunity for public service.

His policy work began in the New York State Assembly, where he spent six years regulating stop-and-frisk searches by the New York City Police Department. In Washington, he led the effort to pass the bipartisan First Step Act during the first Trump administration. That law reduced sentences for certain drug crimes. The bill required cooperation with Jared Kushner, President Trump's son-in-law at the time. Jeffries told Time that getting things done in Washington often requires a coalition of unusual suspects. He described his partnership with Kushner as producing real results.

Jeffries has navigated political identity questions within his party. He was once a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and sponsored Medicare for All proposals. He has drawn skepticism from the party's left wing over the years. As speaker, he will manage the influence of Democratic Socialists of America-aligned members in the new term. He told The Atlantic in 2021 that he would never bend the knee to hard-left democratic socialism. He argues that Black progressives understand systemic racism as a central driver of inequity, whereas hard-left progressives often anchor the defining problem in class.

Jeffries also served as an impeachment manager during the Senate trial regarding President Trump's pressure campaign on Ukraine. Like many Democrats, he has not committed to pursuing impeachment again in Trump's second term. He told Fox News in April that impeachment is not a top priority for his party. In September, he told ABC that Democrats have not ruled any options in or out. He has maintained that the primary focus for the new Congress is lowering costs for Americans. The House will vote for its speaker when the new Congress convenes on Jan. 3.