A pair of House floor missteps has prompted questions about whether Democrats are prepared to lead the chamber as they move toward a majority and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries seeks the speakership.
Democrats are projected to win 255 seats, with 12 races still undecided. Their strong showing last week included gains in traditionally Republican states such as Texas, Mississippi, Kansas and South Carolina.
Still, some observers say recent setbacks could reflect problems with the party’s leadership. Fred Trump III, a Democrat and nephew of President Donald Trump, said he might reconsider supporting Jeffries after 11 Democrats missed a procedural vote on an effort to impeach Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. He said the absence helped Hegseth and was disrespectful to military members and veterans.
House Republican leaders had already blocked Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, from advancing his impeachment effort. The absence of the 11 Democrats during Tuesday evening’s procedural vote contributed to that outcome. If seven more Democrats had been present, the motion to dismiss Massie’s resolution would have failed, setting up debate and a likely impeachment vote the following day.
“Attendance was clearly important, but Democratic leaders failed to secure enough members and handed Republicans a win,” said Sean Vitka, executive director of Demand Progress.
Progressive journalist David Schuster also criticized Jeffries, arguing that the missed votes exposed a leadership weakness, even if Democrats can bring the impeachment resolution back later.
Rep. Melanie Stansbury, a New Mexico Democrat, said in a video that she and other lawmakers were caught in traffic. Other accounts said some members were at a fundraiser less than two miles from the Capitol. Several lawmakers cited medical procedures or family emergencies.
The following day, a bill that Democratic leaders had urged members to oppose passed by voice vote. No Democrat asked for a recorded vote. Democrats accused Republicans of using parliamentary tactics to avoid having members publicly support cuts to veterans’ benefits.
Even so, most Democrats do not appear to view the episodes as a serious threat to Jeffries’ bid to become speaker.
Democratic strategist Mike Nellis said there seemed to be some frustration and possibly tension around vote coordination, though he was unsure where the breakdown occurred. He said the next speaker would need to make sure members were aligned, but noted that no serious challenger to Jeffries had emerged. Nellis added that House Democrats largely have confidence in Jeffries and Minority Whip Katherine Clark, who is expected to become majority leader.
Democratic commentator Dan Turrentine said lawmakers in both parties and both chambers sometimes miss votes, and that the incident did not reflect on Jeffries’ leadership.
Some Democrats placed responsibility on the members who were absent. Clark said lawmakers need to arrive on time, while also criticizing Republicans for not taking a stand against Hegseth. Rep. Jared Moskowitz of Florida called the absences unfortunate but said they were not the leadership’s fault.
