Pelosi seeks House Democratic support to be Speaker

In morning meetings, both Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., won the votes to keep their posts next year.

House Republicans – who will become the minority party in that chamber in January – convene in the afternoon. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., is seeking to fend off a conservative challenge from Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, for minority leader next year.

House Democrats are not picking leaders until later this month but could have the most interesting day of all, as House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., seeks to corral the support she would need to become speaker amid speculation that she lacks the votes.

Pelosi sought to push back Wednesday on another Democrat’s prediction that she would fall short in her bid to become speaker next year.

Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass.,, a leader of the anti-Pelosi faction, is advancing the idea that Pelosi cannot round up enough support.

“I’m a busy person, but I will be the speaker of the House no matter what he said,” Pelosi told reporters in response.

In her bid to become House speaker, Pelosi also highlighted a growing number of endorsements from labor groups, including the Service Employees International Union, which spent heavily to help elect Democrats to Congress this year.

Pelosi’s office released a letter from SEIU President Mary Kay Henry saying the minority leader had demonstrated her support for the union’s key issues, including increasing the minimum wage and improving Medicare and Medicaid.

Pelosi on Wednesday also won the support of the United Steelworkers, which issued a statement praising “her proven track record of getting things done.”

Separately, Pelosi released a letter from 11 other unions that are endorsing her speakership bid. Six of those were new endorsements: the Air Line Pilots Association, American Federation of Government Employees, United Auto Workers, United Brotherhood of Carpenters, United Food and Commercial Workers and National Association of Letter Carriers.

Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., another leading opponent of Pelosi’s bid for House speakership, said that the now-minority leader could possibly be elected speaker if other changes are made in the ranks of Democratic leadership.

“That’s a possibility,” Perlmutter told reporters. “But there haven’t been any discussions about that, but it’s certainly a possibility.”

Perlmutter did not spell out what changes would be necessary for Pelosi to garner the support of those Democrats opposed to her speakership bid, but there has been talk about asking her to limit her tenure and shaking up the No. 2 and No. 3 Democratic positions in the House.

Some Democrats are also interested in rule changes that would decentralize power in the chamber.

“People want to see change, and I think a lot of these candidates ran on change – and that includes our leadership team, which has been in place for 16 or 17 years now,” Perlmutter said. “People ran saying they were coming to Washington for change, and this was a change election. So that’s the bottom line.”

Meanwhile, Rep. Marcia Fudge, D-Ohio, said Wednesday that she is being encouraged to run for speaker if Pelosi does not have the votes.

“I have ruled out nothing,” Fudge told reporters. “But what I’m saying is I haven’t given it any thought. I am getting encouraged. That is what made me start finally thinking about it.”

Fudge said that “it’s clear” she will not support Pelosi for speaker. She said she expects other Democratic candidates to emerge if it becomes likely that Pelosi, the current minority leader, does not have the votes in January.

“Let us just hypothetically say that there are not enough votes for her to win on the floor,” Fudge said. “Someone will emerge, if no one has emerged before that. We’re not going to allow the Republicans to have a speaker.”

Meeting behind closed doors, Senate Republicans decided to keep McConnell as majority leader, according to an individual familiar with the proceedings.

McConnell was elected by acclamation, according to the person, who was not authorized to release the result and requested anonymity.

McConnell led the GOP to victory in the midterm Senate elections, albeit by a narrow margin. Republicans have a 51-47 advantage in the chamber, with races in Florida and Mississippi unresolved.

Sen. John Thune of South Dakota was selected as the majority whip, according to his spokesman. Thune succeeds Sen. John Cornyn of Texas in the No. 2 GOP slot. Cornyn was term-limited

Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, emerged as the winner Wednesday over Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., in the contest for vice chairman of the Senate Republican Conference.

The race for the No. 5 position among Senate Republicans pitted two female lawmakers against one another for a spot in GOP leadership ranks dominated by white men. McConnell has said he has been seeking to add women to the leadership team for years.

Besides maintaining Schumer as minority leader, Senate Democrats also decided Wednesday to keep the rest of their leadership team in place, according to an individual familiar with the proceedings.

That includes Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., as minority whip and Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., as assistant minority leader, according to the person, who was not authorized to release the results and requested anonymity.