Democrat Nancy Pelosi announced Friday that she is seeking re-election in 2024.J. Scott Applewhite (AP)
Nancy Pelosi picked the daisy. The congresswoman, one of the most powerful women in Washington, gave hints about her future this Friday. She is seeking re-election in the 2024 election. The octogenarian was named Speaker Emeritus in November after stepping down as the Democrats’ lead in the House of Representatives. Now she will seek to extend her time in the Capitol, a journey that began in 1987 with her arrival in a room filled with just 23 women out of 435 lawmakers (today there are 125). His decision coincides with a nationwide debate in the United States about installing a gerontocracy at the top of power.
“Our city needs you more now to represent San Francisco’s values and drive recovery. “Our country must show the rest of the world that our flag is still here, with freedom and justice for all,” the 83-year-old congresswoman wrote on the social network X, formerly Twitter. Pelosi announced her decision this Friday morning at a breakfast meeting in San Francisco. The news ends speculation about his future that began when he passed the baton to Hakeem Jeffries last fall.
Pelosi was elected Democratic minority leader in 2002 during the George W. Bush administration. Five years later, she became the first woman to hold the office of Speaker, the President of the House of Commons. That made her the third-strongest force in Washington, a position she was able to hold again in 2019 and had to relinquish last year when the Republicans took over the House of Representatives with a minimum and were replaced by also California’s Kevin McCarthy. .
It is unusual for a congressman who has held the position of Speaker to remain in Washington after handing over leadership of his faction. The last Democrat to do so was Sam Rayburn, who held the office three times for 17 years between 1940 and 1961. However, nothing is common in Pelosi’s political career. With a very high profile, the legislator said goodbye to her prominent role. He drew international attention with his personal style by announcing a tour of Taiwan, further straining the Joe Biden administration’s ties with Beijing.
Now, however, Pelosi is forced to tailor her approach to the local level. In January 2023, she became the Representative for San Francisco’s 11th Circuit, a position she will hold until January 2025, when she approaches her 85th birthday.
Pelosi’s silence since last fall had sparked a contentious race for the coveted legislative position he has held for 36 years. Several Democratic politicians began raising money to launch the generational change campaign. Some of those rivals set out in a caravan today following Pelosi’s announcement. “The Speaker Emeritus is one of the most talented and transformative leaders of our time. It’s good news for San Francisco and the country that it continues to serve our community,” said local Sen. Scott Wiener, a 53-year-old progressive who had accelerated fundraising with a 2024 goal.
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Despite her age, Pelosi has defeated her rivals in primaries for decades. In recent democratic elections, lawmakers received more than 70% of the vote. A large part of its strength lies in its ability to raise money. According to Open Secrets, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to transparency in politicians’ finances, the congresswoman raised $25 million in the last election cycle. It was supported by law firms such as Alphabet (Google) and the University of California, among others. In addition, more than five million private donations were received from pensioners.
Pelosi is a passionate supporter of Washington’s top politicians. The United States has been locked in a nationwide debate for months about the ages of Biden and Trump ahead of the 2024 election and whether there is a need to set career boundaries for candidates for public office. The controversy gained momentum this summer after Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell was frozen in a blip, his second.
The congresswoman came to this discussion with her sword drawn. He has attacked Senator Dianne Feinstein, his close childhood friend, as a sexist critic who, at the age of 90, caused oodles of ink in Washington due to her mental and physical decline. Facing the pressure, Feinstein, who has served on Capitol Hill since 1992, announced she would leave the Senate in 2024.
Since leaving the Democratic leadership, Pelosi has retained frontline duties in legislative committees. His role since then has been that of a diplomatic figure of sorts, building support for his party and filling its coffers. He is estimated to have raised $700 million for his organization since arriving in the US capital. At Friday’s meeting in San Francisco, Pelosi gave hints about the keys that keep her in power. “I know the Congress very well and I know the country very well. And most importantly: I know this city well. “Because of everything that’s at stake, some people have called me and asked, ‘Can you stay a little longer?'” the congresswoman said. Voters will have the answer in just over a year.
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