Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced Friday that she will seek re-election in 2024, aiming to extend her historic tenure in the US House of Representatives after more than 36 years.
Pelosi, 83, resigned from her leadership post earlier this year after becoming the first female Speaker of the House of Representatives in 2007.
A opinion In a social media post, she referenced her home city of San Francisco’s ongoing economic recovery efforts following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: “Now more than ever, our city needs us to advance San Francisco values and fuel our recovery. Our country needs America to show the world that our flag is still here, with freedom and justice for ALL.”
She added: “That’s why I’m running for re-election – and respectfully ask for your vote.”
In an interview with Politico last monthPelosi hinted at re-election, citing the number of veteran California Democrats who are retiring or already out of Congress: Senator Dianne Feinstein, former Senator Barbara Boxer and former Rep. Jackie Speier.
“I haven’t thought about it much,” she said in the interview published this week.
Sympathetic to her colleague, Boxer told Politico, “It’s really hard to leave a job that you love and that you’re great at.”
She added: “If I’m Nancy, it’s not easy.”
But Pelosi’s announcement comes at a time when voters have expressed concerns in Washington about the aging of the country’s leadership.
Last week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) experienced a second shocking episode after a reporter asked him about his own 2026 re-election plans. A similar incident occurred in front of news agency cameras at the end of July.
But McConnell, 81, indicated this week that he does not plan to resign before his term ends.
Neither is Feinstein, 90, despite health concerns that are causing a stir, although her office announced earlier this year that she would not be running for re-election in 2024.
Opinion poll has shown That President Joe Biden’s age (80) is also a concern for some voters as he prepares to run for a second term as president next year. Biden’s potential Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump, is also not a young man at 77 years old.
Biden wasn’t just joking; urged voters to look at his record in office as proof of his fitness with the words: “Take care of me.”