Rep.-elect Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., announced Monday she would support House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s bid to become the next speaker.
“I am supporting Barbara Lee for Caucus Chair, Katherine Clark for Vice Chair and Nancy Pelosi for Speaker,” said Pressley in a statement. “[The person] who is in a formal leadership role matters, and these women have a strong progressive track record, but this 116th Congress will be defined by more than who holds a title,” said Pressley, who had previously been silent on whether she would back Pelosi. Pressley is set to become a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
“I have lived and campaigned by the mantra that I do not need to ask permission to lead,” the first black woman to join Massachusetts’ congressional delegation continued. “We need bold gun violence legislation that saves lives, a green new deal, justice for survivors, and urgent action on voting rights. In partnership and coalition with our communities, we are ready to fight toward these critical goals.”
Pressley is the latest incoming member of Congress to back Pelosi’s return to the speakership. Reps.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Sharice Davids, D-Kans., for example, declared last week that they would cast a ballot for the Democratic conference’s longtime leader in a private caucus meeting on Wednesday and in a floor vote on Jan. 3.
Pelosi, despite not having a named challenger for the gavel, faces opposition from two forces within her own party. One group of 15 Democratic lawmakers signed a letter last week outlining their refusal to support Pelosi, citing a need for change; nine Democrats belonging to the House Problem Solvers Caucus are also denying her their endorsement unless she agrees to reforming some of the rules governing to the House.
Pelosi needs a majority of 218 votes in January to be named speaker of the new Congress.
