I have absolutely no knowledge of what led up to her being chosen as Speaker, nor has the background of it been reported, it seems.
Just interested in the factual side of where that support came from, who she was competing against, etc.
Thanks!
Her wiki page lays it out. She carries lot of water for other congressmen re helping them raise money. That goes a long way toward advancing your prospects in gaining leadership positions.
Unless you’re Henry Clay and you get named Speaker in your first House term, the usual plan is to just work your way up the ladder and seek leadership positions. Being a good fundraiser helps. It also helps to be liked.
It’s not that much different than getting promoted in any other field. It’s just that they have elections in politics in the US.
well, she was chosen as second in command dem in 01, advanced to 1st the next year and stayed there till now, I guess the other representatives thought she’d been doing a good job
Since the mid-Nineteenth Century, Speakership elections have been conducted via the “caucus system”. Each party caucuses and nominates a candidate for Speaker. and the members of each party vote for their caucus choice when the new Congress convenes. Obviously, the majority party wins the vote.
As of yesterday (1/4/2007), therefore, Pelosi was nominally competing against Republican John Boehner, the Republican leader and nominee of their caucus for Speaker. She won the election on the usual party-line vote, 233 to 202.
The real “contest” took place last November 16, when Pelosi was nominated by the Democratic caucus. However, this also wasn’t much of a contest–she was the Democratic minority leader in the previous Congress, and in the flush of victory, her elevation to Speaker was a foregone conclusion. She ran unopposed.
The real real contest took place on November 15, 2002, after Dick Gephardt stepped down as minority leader to run for President. Pelosi, the minority whip, defeated Harold Ford for promotion to minority leader, 177 to 29. This also wasn’t much of a contest, as promotion from whip to leader is somewhat (but not always) automatic.
So the real real real contest occurred on October 10, 2001, when David Bonior stepped down as whip to run for Governor of Michigan. Pelosi defeated Steny Hoyer in a hard-fought campaign to become the new whip, 118 to 95. Hoyer is now the majority leader and ranks second behind Pelosi, but he won the position without her support and apparently there is still some ill feeling between the two.
Why was she chosen whip? As astro says, it’s mostly a matter of carrying water, raising money, doing favors, avoiding scandal, and getting re-elected (having a safe district helps) enough times so that everybody can get to know you.
I like the realistic way you explain things. Very helpful to those of us who are politically unsavy. Thanks!
Yes, nicely done.
Also kudos. Couldn’t have said it better myself (although I was tempted to try…)
In a sense, the “real” (times something) contest was when Democrats won a majority in the House on November 7th, thus ensuring that Democrats would win the Speaker election along party lines.