In the more than three years since he became the top House Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries has sometimes struggled to escape the shadow of his esteemed predecessor.
He stood alone in the limelight Wednesday, however, after engineering a feat of political hardball — a statewide vote paving the way for new Virginia congressional maps that could wipe out four GOP-held seats — that earned praise from Nancy Pelosi herself.
“I’m very proud,” the former speaker said in an interview, adding Jeffries has handled redistricting “fabulously.”
Tuesday’s vote was the culmination of months of lobbying from Jeffries to counter the mid-decade redistricting push launched by Trump and his allies in Texas. He barnstormed the country, pressing Democratic state legislators to match the GOP blow-for-blow.
Not all of his entreaties were successful, but he found partners in the Virginia state house who were willing to tee up a plan that would turn the Commonwealth’s 6-5 Democratic map into a 10-1 advantage. Jeffries backed the effort with $38 million in funding from a leadership-aligned group, House Majority Forward — the biggest single expenditure in the fight.
“Donald Trump and Republicans launched this gerrymandering war,” Jeffries told reporters Wednesday. “And we’ve made clear as Democrats that we’re going to finish it.”
Now that his bet has paid off, Jeffries has concrete proof of his political savvy — and muscle — as he moves to secure the speaker’s gavel in November.
That could help quiet concerns from some Democrats about whether the infamously careful Jeffries is the man for a moment when Trump is pulling every possible lever of his power to gain advantage for the GOP.
His allies say he has now proven he can match the Trump administration stride for stride in strategy and rhetoric.
“He did a damn good job, and we got it,” Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan said in an interview. “And if people are going to screw around, we’re not afraid to push back.”
Jeffries showed some swagger in the immediate aftermath Wednesday. During a morning news conference, he employed language more befitting of a battlefield than Capitol Hill.
Flanked by other top party leaders, he called DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene of Washington a “field general.” He said Democrats would “continue to fight one battle after another.” And Jeffries warned Republicans in Florida that if they embark on their own redistricting scheme, they will “F around and find out.”
Jeffries’ other favorite slogan of late is a direct jab at Trump: “Maximum warfare. Everywhere. All the time” — a quote from an August New York Times article attributed to a person close to the president describing the MAGA approach to redistricting.
The aggressive approach is not only aimed at Republicans, however, but at doubters in his own party who have compared him unfavorably to Pelosi — who spent the final four years of her speakership in daily battles with Trump, often getting the best of the president.
For better or worse, Jeffries is nowhere as well-known as Pelosi was at the height of her power. About a quarter of Americans polled last month by CNN had no idea who Jeffries is — significantly trailing his Senate counterpart Chuck Schumer in name recognition. And those who do know him haven’t been especially impressed, even inside his own party: A November YouGov poll — taken shortly after the end of a record government shutdown — found that 23 percent of Democrats held an unfavorable view of the House minority leader.
But members of his caucus — who have been eager to aggressively counter GOP power grabs in the post-Pelosi era — showered their leader with praise Wednesday.
“Those of us who’ve been here with him over his career never had even a moment of regret,” Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, who is being targeted in a GOP-led redistricting effort in Missouri, said in an interview. “And he is going to lead us out of the wilderness, and I look forward to him becoming a speaker.”
Still, some in his caucus and on the campaign trail to join it — mainly on the progressive wing — have openly called on Jeffries to do more to counter Trump and Capitol Hill Republicans. That sentiment has not entirely faded.
“I think every leader should always be doing more,” Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) said in an interview. “And he hears me say this all the time.”
In response to the demands, Jeffries pointed to the ousters of “toxic” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Attorney General Pam Bondi in a brief interview as proof that Democratic lawmakers were getting results. Jeffries has also found major success using discharge petitions and other unorthodox legislative maneuvers to commandeer the House agenda from Speaker Mike Johnson.
“We’re going to continue to push back aggressively against the Trump administration,” he said. “There’s certainly more work to be done in that regard, and we’re continuing to lean in.”
Ramirez conceded that the redistricting wins have gone some way to proving his abilities as a party leader.
“Yesterday was a good step forward for him,” she said.
Progressives might still seek to mount an alternative to Jeffries if Democrats can retake the House majority in November. But most members of the caucus are mostly relieved that, with the four new Virginia seats in hand, they appear to have successfully parried the GOP redraw effort.
“I hope it means we have a greater likelihood of Speaker Jeffries,” Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) said of the vote in his home state. “A strong leader with a clear agenda for the American people.”
