“She is very aware. If Nancy can do anything, she is able to count. She is counting all the votes,” said Rep. Gerry Connolly, a Democrat from Virginia. “She is very aware of the fact that, with a small majority – with some members who voted against her two years ago – there will have to be an effort to persuade them that this was then and now is. To have uncertainty about the high -speaker. “
On Monday, Pelosi’s office sent requests to chiefs of staff at Democratic offices across Hill, asking if their bosses would be physically present for the vote. To earn the title of speaker, a member must receive at least 50% of the vote plus one. All members who vote must be in DC personally because the vote for House Speaker will take place before the House approves its package of rules containing the provisions that allowed Democrats to vote by proxy for months.
Representative Elissa Slotkin of Michigan and Representative Jared Golden of Maine said they did not plan to vote for Pelosi. A handful of other moderate Democrats, including Virginia MP Abigail Spanberger and some progressives – including elected MPs Cori Bush of Missouri and Jamaal Bowman of New York – declined to say how they would vote. A Democratic member – Congresswoman Gwen Moore of Wisconsin – announced that she tested positive for Covid earlier this week and Pelosi’s deputies are also concerned that other members may be absent due to underlying health problems.
But Pelosi’s allies emphasized that she is confident that she will easily win the vote in plenary on Sunday. Pelosi told reporters on Monday, “I’m fine,” and members who spoke to the spokesman recently said she is projecting confidence that she will be re-elected.
Pelosi told his members on a private call earlier this week that his only enemy in the fight to be mayor was Covid, according to several sources familiar with her, because it could affect the number of members who could come to Washington and vote. While there is nothing explicitly preventing members from voting while they are sick, the optics would be another matter.
Although Pelosi has a small margin of error, her allies have warned that the speaker has a myriad of tools at his disposal to garner votes, including a major fundraising operation, committee assignments and legislation that she can submit.
“She is one of the few clear leaders who can provide cohesion and leadership for the Democratic majority,” said Connolly. “I think she is going for this in a strong position, but clearly aware of the challenges she faces in terms of numbers and the uncertainty of the coronavirus.”
This story was updated with further developments on Tuesday.