House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has stressed that a path to installing him as speaker could pass through his home state of New York.
Republicans hold a slim majority in the House of Representatives (220 seats to Democrats’ 212), and Jeffries concluded that four or five seats in the Empire State could be the deciding factor.
“What’s interesting is, here in New York, we have four or five seats at stake. We could take back a House seat in New York state alone, we could take back five seats in California, and then of course seats across the country,” Jeffries said Wednesday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
Fast forward to the 2022 midterm elections, and Democrats were dealt a blow in New York state, a centerpiece of their redistricting efforts, when a New York appeals court struck down Democrats’ congressional districting maps and ordered the drawing of new ones.
The decision came in response to an attempt by Democrats that year to circumvent the Independent Redistricting Commission.
The provisional map pitted Democrats in the Empire State against one another, and Republicans ultimately recaptured four seats, including one won by lying former Rep. George Santos of Long Island that has since gone to Democrats.
Last December, the New York Court of Appeals threw out the tentative congressional maps drawn by a special judge and ordered new maps to be drawn through an independent redistricting commission.
This has given Democrats hope that they can make up for lost ground in House elections, traditionally a Democratic stronghold.
Jeffries highlighted the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s efforts to retake the House, including campaigning in New York.
“It’s critical that we take back the House of Representatives so that we have a partner in the 47th President of the United States, Kamala Harris, so we can continue to get great things done, and we’re going to work hard to make sure that Harris is that partner,” Jeffries stressed.
Democrats are also desperate to hold onto the Senate. They face a tough fight in this election, defending 23 seats (including four independents) to 11 held by Republicans.
Republicans are already considered the favorites to win one of the seats held by retiring Sen. Joe Manchin (Independent, West Virginia).
Jeffries met with Biden during the Democratic insurrection following his debate performance with former President Donald Trump.
In the private meeting, Jeffries expressed serious concerns that if Biden remained the nominee, it could jeopardize the Democrats’ chances of winning the next election. The Washington Post reported..
A spokesman for Jefferies declined to confirm or deny the content of the meeting.
“This is a private conversation and it remains private. We, of course, have the utmost respect for President Biden. He will go down in history as one of the most influential presidents in American history,” he said.
Jeffries will publish a new book later this year called “The ABCs of Democracy.”
