Democrats pick Hakeem Jeffries to replace Nancy Pelosi as party leader

WASHINGTON: House Democrats officially elected Hakeem Jeffries as party leader, replacing Nancy Pelosi. Jeffries is the first Black-American to head a major political party in Congress as long-serving Speaker Pelosi and her team step aside.

Showing rare party unity after their midterm election losses, the House Democrats are moved seamlessly from one history-making leader to another, uniting around the 52-year-old New Yorker, who has vowed to "get things done," even after Republicans won control of the chamber.

"It's a solemn responsibility that we are all inheriting," Jeffries told reporters. "And the best thing that we can do as a result of the seriousness and solemnity of the moment is lean in hard and do the best damn job that we can for the people."

It's rare that a party that lost the midterm elections would so easily regroup and stands in stark contrast with the upheaval among Republicans, who are struggling to unite around GOP leader Kevin McCarthy as the new House speaker as they prepare to take control when the new Congress convenes in January.

The trio led by Jeffries includes 59-year-old Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts as the Democratic whip and 43-year-old Rep. Pete Aguilar of California as caucus chairman. The new team of Democratic leaders is expected to slide into the slots held by Pelosi and her top lieutenants - Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Democratic Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina - as the 80-something leaders make way for the next generation.