Photos: Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in 2008.
Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images

In pictures: Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi

Updated 1858 GMT (0258 HKT) January 3, 2023

Nancy Pelosi speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in 2008.
Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images

Nancy Pelosi announced in November that she would not run for a leadership post in the 118th Congress.

The move set the stage for a major shakeup in House Democratic leadership and marked the end of an era in Washington.

Pelosi is a towering figure in American politics with a history-making legacy of shattering glass ceilings as the first and so far only woman to be speaker of the US House of Representatives.

When she was first elected speaker in 2007, Pelosi reflected on the significance of the event and what it meant for women in the United States.

"This is an historic moment," she said in a speech after accepting the speaker's gavel. "It's an historic moment for the Congress. It's an historic moment for the women of America."

Pelosi served in the role until 2011, when Democrats lost control of the House. In 2019, she was again elected speaker after Democrats won back the House from Republicans.