Hakeem Jeffries Emerges as New Face of House Democrats

WASHINGTON — At a leadership table of septuagenarians, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York has just emerged as the Democrats’ face of generational change.

Jeffries, a 48-year-old Brooklynite with a golden tongue, was elected by his fellow Democrats on Wednesday to the relatively obscure position of chairman of the House Democratic caucus. It is the No. 5 leadership spot, but Jeffries is now on the fast track, with the potential to make history as the first black speaker of the House.

“Hakeem represents the leading edge of a new wave of Democrats,” said Steve Israel, the former New York congressman and onetime chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “I think he tapped into a sense in the caucus that the next generation of leaders needs to begin crystallizing.”

As Jeffries takes his place in Democratic leadership, at least two, and possibly three, of the top spots will be occupied by lawmakers who are pushing 80. A fourth, Rep. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico, who has been elected assistant Democratic leader, is, at 46, younger than Jeffries, but not as talked about. One of the septuagenarians, Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, who is hoping to be elected speaker, is calling herself a “transitional” figure. Jeffries, questioned about his aspirations, sought to dismiss the speculation.

“Not at all,” he said, asked if he would like to be speaker. He said he felt “a heavy burden” in his new post, which required him to immediately preside over the internal races Wednesday for other top leadership spots, including speaker.

“It’s like the shortest transition in American history,” he said.

But in a caucus where seniority is prized, Jeffries’s ambitions — which he has not taken pains to mask — can rub some people the wrong way. He answered carefully when asked how long he believed Pelosi’s “transition” should take, saying it was up to her to decide.

“I think she has correctly said if she’s the next speaker that she is not going to lame-duck herself,” he said, “particularly because we’re dealing with the Trump administration, we’re dealing with Mitch McConnell and the boys in the Senate, and we’re dealing with some of Trump’s friendly co-conspirators in the House.”

In one hint of his ambitions, Jeffries kept up a busy travel schedule during the campaign season, headlining fundraisers for House Democrats in Michigan, Rhode Island, California and other states. But his victory Wednesday was not easy; he edged out Rep. Barbara Lee of California, a progressive icon, 123-113.

Their race split the Congressional Black Caucus (both are members) and reflected deep tensions among Democrats over who should lead the party forward amid an influx of young newcomers who are agitating for change.

Lee, 72, said afterward that she “absolutely” saw ageism and sexism at work.

“That’s something women, especially women of color and African-American women, have to fight constantly, each and every day,” she said, adding, “We still have many glass ceilings to break.”

Jeffries, in response, called the race “a friendly contest of ideas.” Inside the auditorium where elections were held, one of his backers, Rep. Juan C. Vargas of California, likened him to another black Democrat with an unusual name and a gift for oratory: former President Barack Obama.

“When I got to Congress, my wife asked me if there was anyone in Congress that reminded me of Barack Obama, and I said, ‘Yeah, there’s this guy Hakeem Jeffries from Brooklyn, I think he’s the next guy,' ” Vargas said, according to one person in the room.

Jeffries, the son of a social worker for the state and a case worker for the City of New York, has a master’s degree in public policy from Georgetown University and a law degree from New York University, and worked as a corporate lawyer, including for CBS, before entering politics. He won his first race in 2006, securing a seat in the New York State Assembly after two unsuccessful attempts. In 2012, he was elected to Congress.

Jeffries has long been on the political radar in New York; in 2015, he was talked about as a possible candidate for mayor, though he made clear at the time that he preferred to stay in the House.

Here in Washington, he is known as a fierce and fiery critic of President Donald Trump; after racial violence erupted last year in Charlottesville, Virginia, he accused Trump of playing “political footsie” with the former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke, telling CNN, “It’s time for him to stop acting like a two-bit racial hustler and start acting like the president of the United States of America.”

But while he is progressive, he is also a pragmatist, and is regarded as someone who may be able to bridge deep divisions that have erupted in the Democratic caucus between the ascendant left and the so-called red-to-blue members, who flipped Republican seats in districts won by Trump.

He has also served as a chairman of the Democratic Policy and Communications Committee, the arm of the party responsible for developing its message during the midterm elections. The committee came up with the catchphrase “For the People,” which Jeffries often sprinkles in his public remarks.

Jeffries owes his spot in leadership to this spring’s stunning upset by his fellow New Yorker, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who unseated Rep. Joseph Crowley, the current caucus chairman, in a primary. Crowley was viewed by some as an heir apparent to the speakership, and has been a mentor to Jeffries, whose oratorical gifts — he gives speeches extemporaneously, without notes — Crowley enthusiastically praised.

“There isn’t a word that comes out of his mouth that his mind hasn’t already approved,” Crowley said, adding, “I think the sky’s the limit for Hakeem.”

Jeffries’ ascent, alongside that of Ocasio-Cortez, sets up a fascinating dynamic among New Yorkers in the House. She is the outsider pushing for change; he is the insider climbing the ranks. And should Trump win re-election in 2020, it is possible that three New Yorkers — the president; Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader; and Jeffries — would hold the reins of power in Washington.