Hakeem Jeffries faces progressive holdouts but no rival as House speaker race takes shape

The 110-plus new members of Congress include familiar faces returning to the House. Rep.-elect Hilda Solis, D-Calif., last served in 2009 before becoming Obama's labor secretary. Rep.-elect Jerry Carl, R-Ala., left Capitol Hill last year after losing a primary. Rep.-elect Melissa Bean, D-Ill., who first won in 2004 and lost in 2010, is back with advice for newcomers: "Make sure you get a really good scheduler and that they schedule eating because your staff will run you all day long."

Progressive resistance

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is on track to become House speaker in January, but some progressives in "The Bloc" are withholding public support. They're seeking legislative guarantees rather than opposing Jeffries outright.

"We're not withholding votes. What we're doing is saying we're undecided. We're not going to rubber stamp anything," said Rep.-elect Adam Hamawy, D-N.J.

These incoming progressives emphasize their agenda reflects American priorities. "It's about what kind of priorities, what kind of floor votes, what kind of plan do we have to actually fight for the bold change the American people sent us here to do," said Rep.-elect Melat Kiros, D-Colo.

Democratic dynamics

Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Conn., views this progressive resistance as "a weaker version" compared to past leadership challenges. "I think [Jeffries] did a great job of keeping the caucus really marching in the same direction in the last two years," Courtney noted.

Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., emphasized that with a larger majority, "managing Democrats is always a challenge" but "having a bigger majority is a lot easier than having a tiny majority." The Democrats now have north of 260 seats, well above the 218 needed to claim the gavel.

No alternative candidate

Despite progressive concerns, no alternative to Jeffries has emerged. "You can't beat somebody with nobody," said Courtney, referring to the 15 ballots it took to elect former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Rep. Glenn Ivey, D-Md., compared the situation to "a coach who takes his team to the Super Bowl. They win by 30 points, and then they got folks who want to fire him the next day."

Rep.-elect Don Leonard, D-Ohio, claimed party leaders warned him they would make his "life a living hell" if he didn't support Jeffries. When pressed about his vote count, Jeffries responded: "I guess we'll find out next Wednesday." The question remains how Jeffries will manage the party's diverse factions when he becomes Speaker on January 3.