Pelosi to address ‘future plans’ – follow midterms live

Jump to contentSign up to our newslettersSubscribeNewsSportsVoicesCultureLifestyleTravelPremiumCloseWith the Republican Party finally projected to win a slim majority in the US House of Representatives, current speaker Nancy Pelosi is set to make announcement today on her political future, potentially setting up a race for the leadership of her party.Current House minority leader Kevin McCarthy has already cleared the first hurdle toward being elected House Speaker by winning the nomination from members of his party – but with more than 30 of his members declining to back him.The result will force him to negotiate with some of his party’s most extreme right-wing representatives, as the House speaker is finally confirmed by a simple majority of those voting. This means that Mr McCarthy can only afford to lose a handful of Republican votes if he is to lead the chamber.Meanwhile, Democrats have retained control of the Senate, securing 50 seats already with hopes of retaining another in a runoff in Georgia next month. Many Senate Republicans have criticised their leader, Mitch McConnell, since the election, but the Kentucky Republican was re-elected to his minority leadership role on Wednesday. 1668695653House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will likely deliver remarks on the floor of the House of Representatives today after Republicans were projected to win a majority in the lower chamber.GOP leader Kevin McCarthy, who was nominated by his caucus to serve as the next speaker, celebrated on Wednesday night, saying ‘Americans are ready for a new direction, and House Republicans are ready to deliver.’Alex Woodward17 November 2022 14:341668695409The results in Lauren Boebert’s race against Adam Frisch for Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District could be called as soon as today, experts say.The deadline for voters to fix ballot discrepancies and for county clerks to receive military and overseas votes passed on Wednesday.Now, there are believed to be a few thousand votes outstanding as Ms Boebert continues to hold a 0.4 per cent lead over Mr Frisch, according to the Associated Press.All ballots must be counted by Friday.Should the race stay within a margin of 0.5 per cent, a recount will be called automatically.Both candidates have already begun preparing for that possibility.Follow developments from the race on our dedicated blog.Megan Sheets17 November 2022 14:301668693609The news that Nancy Pelosi will announce her leadership plans today has sent the DC press pack scrambling to keep up – and has everyone far more excited than the news the Republicans are taking over the House.Andrew Naughtie17 November 2022 14:001668691800Republicans have won a slim majority of seats in the House of Representatives, giving the GOP control of the lower chamber of Congress.Republicans gained numerous seats in places where a majority of voters elected Joe Biden just two years ago, with races in Democratic strongholds such as New York falling into the GOP column for the first time in many years after courts rejected a congressional map that would have favoured the Democratic Party by a large margin.Still, it was far from the ‘red wave’ anticipated by Republicans, with embattled Democrats in critical races managing to protect their seats as voters – particularly young people and women – rejected far-right campaigns on abortion rights, Mr Trump’s looming precense and the GOP’s worryingly antidemocratic agenda.Democratic candidates also maintained control of the US Senate by flipping a Pennsylvania seat and scoring victories in critical battleground states, with a runoff election in Georgia between incumbent Democrat Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker set for 6 December.A number of House races remain undecided but Republicans will control at least 218 seats when the 118th Congress convenes in January Andrew Naughtie17 November 2022 13:301668690000Nevada’s reelected Democratic Senator Catherine Cortez Masto told CBS News that voters were motivated to vote against her Republican opponent because of the bogus election fraud narrative he amplified and that fuelled the attack on the US Capitol.Voters were voting not only for ‘kitchen-table issues’ and abortion rights but also after seeing images and being reminded of the violence on 6 January 2021.’We can’t forget the many people who were in their homes, watching it. … And the emotional impact it had for so many people acrtoss this country,’ she said. ‘The attack on January 6, what the intent was, that violent mob to undermine our democracy.’Her opponent Adam Laxalt, who co-chaired Trump’s re-election campaign, amplified the same baseless election fraud narrative that fuelled the attack.'[Voters] were talking to me about this, and how important it also was to guard our democracy and our democratic instutitions,’ she said. ‘This crossed party lines … You couldn’t discount it.’Alex Woodward17 November 2022 13:001668688209Of the 48 Republicans who will serve in the upper chamber starting next year, 37 voted to keep the Bluegrass State’s senior senator as their leader, while ten of them voted for Florida senator Rick Scott, who headed the National Republican Senatorial Committee during the 2022 election cycle. One senator voted to abstain.The Kentuckian is the longest-serving GOP leader in Senate historyAndrew Naughtie17 November 2022 12:301668686400New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez criticised House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy for rewarding ‘some of the most racist’ Republicans in Congress as the GOP prepares to retake the majority.The House stripped far-right Representatives Paul Gosar of Arizona and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia of their committees in the current Congress.Specifically, the House also censured Mr Gosar after he posted an anime video that depicted a character with Mr Gosar’s face killing a character with Ms Ocasio-Cortez’s face.Ms Greene appeared to back Mr McCarthy, who has indicated that he would reinstate the members if Republicans regain the House majority after midterm elections.’I mean beyond unpunished, Kevin McCarthy has made a very clear statement – has stated that he intends to reward some of the most racist members of Congress that we have served in recent years,’ she told The Independent.Kevin McCarthy has indicated that he would reinstate Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar on committeesAlex Woodward17 November 2022 12:001668684527With Republicans now projected to take control of the House, the next crucial step in Democrats’ calculations is establishing whether Nancy Pelosi will remain their leader. And today, it seems, is the day when they will find out her decision, as per her deputy chief of staff:Andrew Naughtie17 November 2022 11:281668682800Former Vice President Mike Pence tells CBS News that he will not testify to the House select committee investigating the attack on the US Capitol.’Congress has no right to my testimony,’ he said. ‘We have a separation of powers … I believe it would establish a terrible precedent for the Congress to summon a vice president of the United States to speak about deliberations that took place at the White House.’Alex Woodward17 November 2022 11:001668679200The US Senate has voted 62-37 to advance a bill that would enshrine federal recognition of same-sex and interracial marriages.The crucial procedural vote on 16 November follows the US Supreme Court’s reversal of constitutional protections for the right to an abortion, raising fears among civil rights groups and LGBT+ advocates that conservative justices would invite challenge to marriage equality and other rights previously defended by the court.A final vote on the bill could come as early as Thursday.A final vote on the bill could come as early as ThursdayAlex Woodward17 November 2022 10:00Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalismBy registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalistsAlready have an account? sign inRegistration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalismBy registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalistsAlready have an account? sign inPlease refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in