US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced that she will step aside after almost 20 years leading Democrats in Congress, and as the first woman to lead the US House.
This comes a day after the Republicans officially won control of the chamber in the 2022 midterms, and three weeks after a violent assault on her husband, Paul, at their San Francisco home.
In her speech, Pelosi said she’s stepping down as Speaker but will continue to represent her San Francisco district in the House.
“With great confidence in our caucus, I will not seek reelection to Democratic leadership in the next Congress. For me the hour has come for a new generation to lead the Democratic caucus that I so deeply respect, ” Pelosi said.
Her decision to step down was expected by many on Capitol Hill and was impacted by her success in helping Democrats defy historical expectations to perform better in the 2022 midterms than anticipated.
The violent attack on her husband also had an effect on the decision. Last month, an intruder broke into the couple’s San Francisco home echoing the chants of the pro-Trump rioters at the Capitol on January 6, 2021– asking “Where is Nancy?”– as they hunted for Pelosi to try to overthrow Joe Biden’s election victory over Trump.
In her speech on Thursday, she warned that democracy is “majestic, but it is fragile” and said voters in 2022 sent a message to congress that they wouldn’t support those who supported violence or insurrection.
She also pointed out that when she first entered Congress in 1987 there were 12 women in the Democratic Caucus and now there are 90, saying “And we want more.”
There is a desire by many for Democrats to elect a younger set of leaders to replace Pelosi, who is 82, and two other House Democratic leaders in their 80s.
Twice elected to the speakership, Pelosi has led through many significant moments under four US Presidents and during her speech on Thursday, she noted she’d enjoyed working with three of them, excluding Trump.
Pelosi is credited with steering a divided caucus through difficult times, including helping the passage of the Affordable Care Act with President Barack Obama, the impeachments of President Donald Trump and helping President Biden’s legislative accomplishments– a pandemic aid bill, a bipartisan infrastructure bill, legislation boosting production of semiconductor chips, a measure lowering prescription drug costs and investing in climate programs.
In 2007, when she first took the gavel as Speaker of the House, Pelosi surrounded herself with children on the floor. Her mantra has been “for the children”, which she has said guides her focus on progressive policies like health care, child care and climate change.