House Democrats prepare to pass the torch, avoiding messy leadership fights

[Valin]

MSN/NBC

Scott Wong

Nov. 27 2022

Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s departure from leadership could easily have led to a power vacuum in which a host of ambitious lawmakers — old and young — publicly battled it out for the chance to lead House Democrats.

Instead, a new generation — Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, 52, of New York; Katherine Clark, 59, of Massachusetts; and Pete Aguilar, 43, of California — will almost certainly be elected to the top three leadership slots this week without a challenge or much fanfare.

There were a couple of bumps along the way. Some younger members are bitter that 82-year-old Majority Whip Jim Clyburn of South Carolina has opted to remain in leadership rather than follow Pelosi, also 82, and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, 83, into the sunset.

But, by and large, Pelosi and her almost-certain successor, Jeffries, have been able to orchestrate a smooth passing of the torch from one generation to the next.

(Snip)