Nancy Pelosi (80) won another term as Speaker of the House of Representatives on Sunday, eking out a close vote as the 117th Congress kicked off, by Diramakini Reporter (Agencies).
The California Democrat,will hold the position for a second consecutive two-year term and fourth overall, having previously been elected in 2007, 2009 and 2019.
She emerged victorious with 216 votes to the 209 votes of Republican challenger, Kevin McCarthy, also of California.Two votes were cast for other candidates and three lawmakers voted present.
Pelosi was expected to come out on top, though by a narrow margin reflective of Republican gains in the House during the most recent election cycle and a Democratic party increasingly splintered along moderate and far-left lines.
Representatives could cast a vote for anyone not limited to Pelosi or McCarthy, or even a lawmaker declare themselves present, or decline to vote at all.
Democratic Maine Rep. Jared Golden cast his vote for Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), a fellow military veteran. Rep. Conor Lamb (D-Penn.) voted for New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries who kicked off the vote with an impassioned speech nominating Pelosi.