Nancy Pelosi stands down as leader of the US House Democrats

Nancy Pelosi stands down as leader of the US House Democrats

Nancy Pelosi, who has led Democrats in the US House of Representatives for almost two decades, has announced she is standing down from the role.

She is the most powerful Democrat in Congress and the first woman to serve as speaker of the House. 

Pelosi, 82, will continue to represent her California district in the lower chamber of Congress. 

The Republican party are projected to take back control of the House, meaning Kevin McCarthy will likely to succeed Mrs Pelosi. 

“I never would have thought that someday I would go from homemaker to House speaker,” Mrs Pelosi said in a statement in the chamber on Thursday.

“I will not seek re-election to Democratic leadership in the next Congress. The hour has come for a new generation to lead the Democratic caucus,” she said.

Mrs Pelso will continue to serve as speaker until January when a new Congress takes over and will remain in the seat she first took up in 1987 until January 2025. 

New York congressman Hakeem Jeffries is expected to take up the post in the House – it would make him the first black congressional leader in US history.