Meet the Newly Elected House Minority Leader

Democrats in Chautauqua County will be familiar with outgoing Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, who has been in leadership of the Democratic Party for 20 years. Pelosi first became House Minority Whip in 2002 before rising to House Minority Leader in 2003. She has served two terms as Speaker of the House, the person third in line to the Presidency, from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2019 to 2023. Pelosi is notable as the first woman to hold any of her positions of leadership in the House as well as her remarkable ability to marshal votes and hold the Democrats' often fractious caucus together.

However, Democrats here in Western New York may be less familiar with the person about to take the mantle of leadership from Nancy Pelosi in the 118th Congress. In 2023, Hakeem Jeffries will become House Minority leader. Like Pelosi before him, Jeffries is breaking new ground as the first Black Representative to serve as the House Minority Leader.

I am deeply familiar with Hakeem Jeffries, as he was my House Representative before relocating back to the Lakewood / Busti area from Brooklyn. Here's the most important thing I can tell you about him: Hakeem Jeffries is a true servant leader. Every year, he holds multiple town halls, both in-person and virtual, throughout his district to update voters on what's going on in Washington DC. In good weather, Jeffries schedules “Congress on Your Corner” outdoor office hours throughout the district, setting up a table or standing in places where his constituents can find him, like farmers' markets and post offices. For hours, he meets one-on-one with constituents, answering questions and listening to concerns.

How great would it be to have that kind of Representative engagement with constituents here in NY #23? We could ask for no one in Democratic leadership more engaged with constituents, responsive to voters' needs and concerns, level-headed, and committed to the kind of change that will improve the lives of the majority of Americans than Hakeem Jeffries.

Jeffries's work as a legislator has focused on social and economic justice. Importantly, he has written and sponsored bills that were passed with significant bi-partisan and constituent support, including the First Step Act, which addressed the nation's "three strikes" rules and expanded funding for reentry programming; the Music Modernization Act, which updated copyright laws to ensure artists are fairly compensated for digital distribution of their work; and the Keep America’s Refuges Operational Act, which helped ensure that Americans can enjoy our vast wildlife refuges and the natural beauty of our environment for generations to come.