House Democrats on Wednesday elected New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries as their new leader next term, The New York Times reports.
Jeffries will replace House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as the leader of the Democratic Party after she said she would step aside while remaining in Congress after her party lost control of the House.
Jeffries, 52, is the first Black congressional leader.
He is joined by Massachusetts Rep. Katherine Clark and California Rep. Pete Aguilar, replacing Maryland Rep. Steny Hoyer and South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn as the No. 2 and No. 3 Democrats in the House.
The trio have spent years positioning themselves for the takeover.
With Clark, 59, and Aguilar, 43, the top three Democrats in the House are an average of 30 years younger than their predecessors.
What happens to Pelosi?:
Pelosi said she will remain in Congress but no longer serve in leadership.
Hoyer said he considered staying on and had support to do so but ultimately decided against it.
Clyburn soon followed suit but said he would stay on in a lower leadership position.
On Wednesday, Rhode Island Rep. David Cicilline dropped his challenge to Clyburn for the position of assistant leader.
California Rep. Adam Schiff had considered making a run for House leader but reportedly told Jeffries that he plans to run for Senate instead.
Dicey time:
The Democratic trio take over as House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy is poised to take over as speaker of the House, though the Republicans’ slim majority has made his ascent far from a sure thing.
“It shows that Democrats are in array, Republicans are in disarray,” California Rep. Ted Lieu told the Times.
Aguilar said that the quick leadership election showed that “while Kevin McCarthy is auctioning off real estate and square footage for every vote he can, we’re united together.”
