ADVERTISEMENT

At Candidate Forum, Only 1 of 10 Dem Hopefuls for Congress Says They'd Support Pelosi for Speaker

Rep. Nancy Pelosi / Getty Images
June 22, 2018

At a forum held Thursday for the 10 Democrats running for Congress in New Hampshire's first district, only one candidate said they would support House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) for speaker of the House.

New Hampshire political reporter Paul Steinhauser captured the moment on Twitter.

"If you are elected, if you go down to Washington, DC, and if the Democrats retake control of the [House of Representatives], would you support Nancy Pelosi as speaker?" the moderator asked the candidates. "If you would support her, raise your hand."

Only one of the 10 Democratic candidates seated next to each other in a row raised their hand.

An increasing number of Democrats have indicated that they do not want Pelosi, who served as speaker from 2007 to 2011, to remain in her leadership position. A recent report found that least 20 Democrats running for the House in November have publicly said they will not support Pelosi for speaker.

Rep. Tim Ryan (D., Ohio), who unsuccessfully challenged Pelosi for House minority leader in 2016, has said the California Democrat does her party more harm than good in her leadership role.

Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D.) currently represents New Hampshire's first congressional district but said she will not run for reelection this year. The district is considered highly competitive and important for Democrats' hopes of retaking control of the House in November. Shea-Porter and Republican Frank Guinta traded victories for the district's congressional seat in several recent election cycles.

One of the candidates running in the district's Democratic primary is Levi Sanders, the son of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.). The younger Sanders is running on a progressive platform similar to his father's that includes raising the minimum wage and free college.