Democrats elect Hakeem Jeffries as House leader

House Democrats elected Rep. Hakeem Jeffries as their new House leader after speaker Nancy Pelosi announced plans to step down next year. Pelosi will remain in the House as a representative.

Following the loss of the House in the midterms, House Democrats chose the 52-year-old New Yorker, who promised “get things done” in the new Congress.

The vote was unanimously in favor of Hakeem. Cheers reportedly broke out in the private meeting following the vote.

“We stand on their collective broad shoulders,” Jeffries said following the vote.

“It an important moment for the caucus — that there’s a new generation of leadership,” said Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH), ahead of voting.

Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) called the leadership election “historic” and a “time for change.”

“The best thing that we can do as a result of the seriousness and solemnity of the moment is lean in hard and do the best damn job that we can for the people,” Hakeem said prior to the vote.

While Democrats will now have the House minority and Jeffries will start off as a minority leader in the new year for the 118th Congress, they may still have some degree of leverage due to the thin lead in majority held by the Republican Party.