WASHINGTON, On a day characterized by acrimonious infighting by Republicans, a powerful Democratic congressman in a heavily-concentrated Caribbean district in Brooklyn, New York, has formally taken over the leadership of the Democrats in the United States House of Representatives.
Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, a lawyer by training, was elected last December to replace Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi of California, who stepped down as House Speaker but remains in the US Congress.
Jeffries – representative for the 8th Congressional District, encompassing Brooklyn and parts of Queens – on Tuesday received 212 votes each time in the three rounds of voting, for Speaker of the House of Representatives, in the new session of Congress that is now narrowly controlled by Republicans.
His votes each time were more than any Republican, including Kevin McCarthy, who failed to secure the majority of votes to be the next Speaker. McCarthy on Tuesday pledged to have more rounds of voting until he is elected Speaker.
Unfortunately, Jeffries cannot be Speaker because Democrats, in the minority, do not have sufficient votes.
However, Democrats on Tuesday demonstrated sheer unity amid Republican disunity and mutiny, rallying around Jeffries,
“He does not see traffic in extremism,” said Congressman Pete Aguilar of California, the No. 3 Democrat, of Jeffries in a nominating speech on the House floor.
“He does not grovel to or make excuses for a twice-impeached, so-called former president,” added Aguilar, referring to former US President Donald J. Trump. “He does not bend a knee to anyone seeking to undermine our democracy because, Madam Clerk, that’s not what leaders do.”
Last month, Brooklyn Democratic Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke said she had voted with “a huge sense of pride” for her Brooklyn Congressional colleague to be the leader of Congressional Democrats.
“It was with a huge sense of pride that yesterday I cast my vote to elevate my brother and dear colleague, the Hon. Hakeem Jeffries, from the chairman of the Democratic Caucus to the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives,” Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican immigrants, told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC).
“As a fellow Brooklynite, I have had countless occasions to work closely alongside Mr. Jeffries,” said Clarke, a senior member of both the US House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee and Committee on Homeland Security, where she serves as chair of the Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Innovation Subcommittee.
Jeffries, 52, thus created history, becoming the first Black person to hold the top position in the House of Representatives.
“Rep. Hakeem Jeffries is blazing a trail for a remarkable new era of Democratic leadership, and the Brooklyn Democratic Party wholeheartedly congratulates Jeffries for his victory,” an elated Brooklyn Democratic Party Chair Assemblywoman Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, the daughter of Haitian immigrants, told CMC shortly after Jeffries’ elevation.
In congratulating Jeffries, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, the son of Grenadian immigrants, noted that Jeffries is “the first Black person to take on this role.
“This is a historic moment, a well-deserved honor, a solemn responsibility, and a significant opportunity to advance a vision and agenda for our nation. I know from many years of governing alongside Rep. Jeffries that he cares deeply for our community and country, and I anticipate his tenure.
“I am sure that, throughout his leadership, we will have points of disagreement, whether on policy or who is in our hip hop top-five, and I am sure that he will approach those debates and this work as he has throughout his time in office – with passion, integrity and a commitment to do good,” Williams added.
Brooklyn Assemblymember Brian A. Cunningham, the son of Jamaican immigrants, said, “it’s a special day in central Brooklyn, where the news of Jeffries’ rise to House Leader carries both the promise and hope that Hakeem will be the first – but not the last – leader reflective of our great community and all its diversity.
“I anticipate great things from Rep. Jeffries, a fellow Brooklynite, hailing from the iconic Black neighborhood of Crown Heights, which I now have the great honor and privilege of representing in the Assembly,” Cunningham said. “In his career, Hakeem has proven himself to be a fierce advocate for justice and a devoted public servant.”
Jeffries ran unopposed as Democratic leader, with Massachusetts Congresswoman Katherine Clark, the former assistant Speaker, elected as a whip, the lead vote counter for House Democrats.
Aguilar, vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus, replaces Jeffries as chairman of the caucus.
Immediately after his election, Jeffries said, “I stand on the shoulders of Shirley Chisholm and others,” referring to the late Caribbean American congresswoman, whose parents hailed from Barbados and Guyana.
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