Pelosi announces she will not run for leadership post after GOP wins House

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi delivers remarks from the House Chambers on November 17.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced on Thursday that she will relinquish her leadership post after leading House Democrats for two decades, building a legacy as one of the most powerful and polarizing figures in American politics.

Pelosi’s long reign became a source of tension within her own party. She won the gavel after the 2018 elections by promising Democrats that she would leave her leadership post by 2022.

House Democrats appear likely to choose New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, 52, to succeed Pelosi as leader, though Democrats won’t vote until Nov. 30.

After her speech Thursday, Pelosi wouldn’t tell reporters who she would support. But House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn announced they would also step down from their leadership posts, and endorsed Jeffries to succeed Pelosi.

Hoyer said Jeffries “will make history for the institution of the House and for our country.” Clyburn added that he hoped Massachusetts Rep. Katherine Clark and California Rep. Pete Aguilar would join Jeffries in House Democratic leadership.

Before Pelosi’s announcement, Ohio Rep. Joyce Beatty, chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, told CNN that she expects her caucus to throw their support behind Jeffries and help him become the first Black House Democratic leader.

Retiring North Carolina Rep. G.K. Butterfield, a former CBC chairman, told CNN that Jeffries “is prepared for the moment” if Pelosi steps aside. Butterfield said he thought Jeffries would run.

Pelosi told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union” on Sunday that members of her caucus had asked her to “consider” running in the party’s leadership elections at the end of the month, adding: “But, again, let’s just get through the election.”

Any decision to run again, the longtime Democratic leader had said, “is about family, and also my colleagues. And what we want to do is go forward in a very unified way, as we go forward to prepare for the Congress at hand.”

“Nonetheless, a great deal is at stake because we’ll be in a presidential election. So my decision will again be rooted in the wishes of my family and the wishes of my caucus,” she continued. “But none of it will be very much considered until we see what the outcome of all of this is. And there are all kinds of ways to exert influence.”

In a sign of the challenges House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy still faces to get 218 votes to become speaker, two members of the far-right House Freedom Caucus told CNN that he doesn’t have the support to become speaker.

Rep. Andy Biggs, who lost to McCarthy this week when the GOP conference nominated him to be the next speaker, predicted “some kind of consensus candidate” will emerge after a period of negotiating.

Asked about the chances McCarthy will become speaker, Biggs said flatly: “He doesn’t have the votes.” 

The vote will be in January.

Asked by CNN when he’ll formally announce he’s running for Democratic leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries said now is the moment to celebrate Nancy Pelosi’s legacy as speaker.

“Let’s spend the day at this moment continuing to process the historic nature of Speaker Pelosi and the opportunity that we’ve all had to serve with her. And it’s been an amazing experience,” Jeffries said.

More background: Jeffries has always been seen as the favorite to be the Democratic leader. Now that House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has announced he will not seek an elected leadership position in the next Congress, it all but guarantees he will be leader of the caucus because he will likely run unopposed. 

Jeffries has been pitching himself to members with Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar as the No. 1, 2 and 3 for the caucus in leadership. 

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) speaks on the first anniversary of the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6 in the Cannon House Office Building in Washington, DC. 

Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat from Washington state, said Thursday she will “have an announcement soon” when asked if she is planning to run for any of the top Democratic leadership jobs.

Jayapal told CNN that she wants to ensure “progressives are given their seat at the table” as Democrats craft their new leadership slate.

It is unclear which position Jayapal would run for, but Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar are all considered the favorites for the party’s top three jobs.  

Jayapal said the plan, to her knowledge, is to let today be focused on outgoing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Then Democrats could start announcing leadership candidacies as early as tomorrow.  

Jayapal praised Pelosi for “paving the way for a lot of people” and noted that she was always “proud of being a progressive.”

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez talks to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on November 17.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told CNN that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s decision to not run for leadership marks “a sea change in American politics, and it will have profound ramifications.” 

The relationship between Ocasio-Cortez and Pelosi has at times been strained and even confrontational, but she sung Pelosi’s praises in the wake of the announcement.  

Speaking about Pelosi’s career, Ocasio-Cortez said to “witness a transition of a 40-year member of Congress who ascended to the speaker, served as the first woman to be third in line to the presidency — this is a sea change in American politics, and it will have profound ramifications. And her leadership has had profound ramifications for the United States of America.”

Ocasio-Cortez declined to weigh in on who she would like to see replace Pelosi and her leadership team. 

“I think in the direct aftermath of such a profound moment, it’s a bit of whiplash right now to try to dive into the weeds of that but I do think that this you know, her broader point of have a deeper generational shift is a well taken one,” she said.

House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn speaks at a press conference on August 15.

House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn issued a statement paving the way for a new trio to lead House Democrats following Nancy Pelosi’s decision to step down as speaker.  

“Speaker Pelosi has left an indelible mark on Congress and the country, and I look forward to her continued service and doing whatever I can to assist our new generation of Democratic Leaders which I hope to be Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark, and Pete Aguilar,” Clyburn said in a statement.

The trio was spotted sitting next to Clyburn and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer during Pelosi’s announcement. And Jeffries has been pitching himself to members with Clark and Aguilar as the No. 1, 2 and 3 for the caucus in leadership. 

In a recent statement about Pelosi’s decision to step down as speaker, Clark did not mention her own leadership aspirations.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries speaks at a press conference at the Capitol on April 5.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, has always been seen as the favorite to serve as Democratic leader should House Speaker Nancy Pelosi step away from leadership.

Now that House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer announced he is not running for House leadership, it all but guarantees Jeffries will be leader of the caucus, because he will likely run unopposed.

Jeffries is the current chair of the House Democratic Caucus and a member of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Rep. Adam Schiff, a Democrat from California, said Wednesday that he won’t seek a leadership position and Rep. Jim Clyburn, a Democrat from South Carolina, has also said he wouldn’t run for party leader.

“I’m not going to get involved in making my choice in this public way. But I have said to both of (Hoyer and Jeffries) that I will not pursue the position of Leader of our party,” Clyburn said on “CNN This Morning” Wednesday.

Jeffries has been pitching himself to members, with Reps. Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar as the No. 1, 2 and 3 for the caucus in leadership. 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of speaks on the House floor at the Capitol in Washington, DC, on November 17.

Coming off the House floor, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wouldn’t say who’d she support as Democratic leader to succeed her. She indicated that now is not the time to make that decision.

Asked how she had prepared two versions of her speech and when she made a final decision, Pelosi said: “I didn’t come here with two versions,” suggesting she made her decision before coming in to the Capitol today. 

Also of note, as Pelosi entered her office you could hear over one minute of loud cheering and clapping, presumably from her staff and others who were there. 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi waves after being elected as the first woman speaker in 2007.

House Speaker Nancy 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.

She was first elected speaker in 2007 and 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.

A small, but vocal, faction of Democrats initially worked to derail Pelosi’s bid to become the next speaker following the 2018 midterm elections, but she ultimately secured the votes needed to reclaim the title. Ahead of the final vote, Pelosi deployed her deal-making abilities and negotiated an agreement with some of the Democrats who had been lobbying to block her from the speakership. As part of the agreement, Pelosi backed a proposal to enact term limits for the party’s top three leaders. The 2018 deal was an informal agreement, however, and caucus rules were never changed imposing any time limits on her tenure.

Nancy Pelosi celebrates on election night in San Francisco, California, in 1987.

Pelosi was first elected to the House in 1987, when she won a special election to fill a seat representing California’s 5th Congressional District. Over the years, she has earned a reputation as a powerful and formidable leader of House Democrats who has exerted significant influence and a tight grip over members of her caucus.

She has also been a fierce adversary to Republicans in Congress and in the White House, and Republicans have made her a high-profile target of criticism by their party.

When she was first elected speaker, 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.”

Read more about Pelosi and her political career here.

House Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer speaks on September 21, in Washington, DC.

House Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer will not run for elected leadership in the next Congress, following Nancy Pelosi’s announcement that she will step away from the speakership.

In a letter sent to all Democratic members Thursday, Hoyer wrote, “I believe that it is time for me, however, to continue my service in a different role. Therefore, I have decided not to seek elected leadership in the 118th Congress.”

He says he will continue to do his work on the Appropriations Committee, “including my focus on education, health care, and investing in America’s productive manufacturing capacity to create more jobs and opportunities for our people.”

Hoyer has served with Pelosi for decades — spending 36 years in a Democratic leadership position.

“I have been honored to serve alongside Nancy Pelosi, whose tenure as Speaker was both historic and extraordinarily productive,” Hoyer said in the letter.

Hoyer referenced Pelosi’s floor remarks when further explaining his decision, telling reporters he believes there are “excellent alternatives.”

“You know when Nancy said there is a time and a season? I think it’s a time and a season. And I think we have excellent alternatives,” he said. 

CNN’s Morgan Rimmer contributed to this reporting