Reporter's Notebook: A user’s manual to upcoming leadership elections in the House and Senate
Internal party House and Senate leadership elections are some of the most fascinating exercises which unfold on Capitol Hill. Both House and Senate Democrats and House and Senate Republicans will...
By Fox News · Fox News
Internal party House and Senate leadership elections are some of the most fascinating exercises which unfold on Capitol Hill. Both House and Senate Democrats and House and Senate Republicans will choose their leaders in the coming days. And the changes are going to be seismic. But not everyone is on board with heir apparent leaders. That’s what makes this process so intriguing. However, there are only two rules in leadership elections: You can’t beat someone with no one. And, perhaps more importantly, it’s about the math. PROGRESSIVES FUME AT HAKEEM JEFFRIES FOR SAYING DEMOCRATS WON'T 'GET EVEN' WITH TRUMP There are some progressives and DSA-affiliated Democrats who will be House Members next year who want someone other than House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y. Who? Well, no one has said. Again, you can’t beat someone with no one. And frankly, it’s hard to believe that Democrats would not elect the first Black Speaker of the House. But drill down on the math. For the sake of argument, let’s say Democrats have 260 House seats in the new Congress. First, Democrats must tap a nominee for Speaker in their Caucus. That needs a simple majority. So surely Jeffries will score at least 131 votes in a private ballot for Speaker. The Speaker of the House is the constitutional officer for the legislative branch of government – much like the president is for the executive branch and the chief justice of the United States for the judicial branch. Thus, the ENTIRE House votes for Speaker when it convenes the new Congress at noon on Jan. 3. There are 435 Members. If all Members cast ballots, Jeffries simply needs 218. Jeffries could lose 40 votes or so and still prevail. So that is not going to happen. It might not even lose more than a couple votes, frankly. Now let’s look at the GOP and their case for Minority Leader. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise , R-La., is running against Rep. Jim Jordan , R-Ohio. If Democrats have 260 seats, Republicans would have 175. All INC…