Axios reports multiple House Democrats and aids have received large volumes of calls and emails urging them not to back House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries for Speaker; some offices logged more than 500 opposing calls over two days. Critics cite wh

2026-11-07

Axios reports multiple House Democrats and aids have received large volumes of calls and emails urging them not to back House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries for Speaker; some offices logged more than 500 opposing calls over two days. Critics cite what they describe as inadequate resistance to the Trump administration and close ties to pro-Israel groups, and are rallying behind Rep. Jamie Raskin; related petitions have nearly 900,000 signatures. Jeffries remains the frontrunner and no Democrat has publicly declared an intent to challenge. House Democratic leadership elections are set for Nov. 18–19; the new Congress will vote for Speaker on Jan. 3.