EASTORA REPORT | Democrats won the House in a landslide. Now some of their own supporters are calling congressional offices to demand that the party choose someone other than Hakeem Jeffries to lead it.
More than a dozen Democratic lawmakers and aides told Axios that offices had been flooded with calls and emails opposing the New York congressman’s bid to become House speaker. One senior Democrat reported more than 500 calls in two days. Another said the number was even higher: “It’s our No. 1 issue, and it’s not close.”
The campaign has moved beyond phone lines. A Change.org petition urging a contested leadership choice passed one million signatures on Saturday, November 7, after nearing 900,000 on Friday. Actor Mark Ruffalo helped draw attention to it with a social media post calling for a new speaker.
Critics on the party’s left object to Jeffries’ ties to pro-Israel organizations and corporate donors, and say Democratic leaders have been too cautious in resisting President Donald Trump. The petition argues that the next speaker should answer to Democratic voters, not only the party establishment.
Some callers have proposed Maryland congressman Jamie Raskin, a prominent figure in the investigation of the January 6 Capitol attack. But Raskin has shown no interest in running, and his office declined to comment.
Opposition is not universal. Representative Jim Himes said he had received no such calls and backed Jeffries. Other lawmakers say they support him, while several newly elected Democrats have declined to commit.
Jeffries has led House Democrats since 2022 without a defection in previous speaker votes. After the November 3 election, Democrats are projected to hold more than 250 seats, giving their leadership room to withstand dissent.
The party will hold leadership elections on November 18-19. The full House will choose its speaker on January 3, when the new Congress convenes.
The calls expose an argument over what the election victory should mean: continuity for the leader who presided over it, or a change of direction demanded by part of the party’s grassroots. So far, the petition has a million signatures but no declared challeng