Washington – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was re-elected to head the chamber when the 117th Congress met on Sunday, with the California Democrat set to lead her party through a new Congress with a minimal majority in years.
Members voted as mayor before taking office on Sunday night, with Pelosi gaining the support of 216 Democrats and 214 to secure the House’s top position. Capitol procedures were marked by the coronavirus pandemic, which led to a change in procedures to ensure that the new Congress could meet safely.
Two Democrats – Jared Golden of Maine and Conor Lamb of Pennsylvania – voted for Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of New York, respectively. Three Democratic members of the House voted “present”. Notably, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, and other members of “The Squad” supported Pelosi in his candidacy for the job of spokesman. House minority leader Kevin McCarthy won 209 votes from Republicans.
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The new session comes days before lawmakers meet to count the votes of the Electoral College and finalize the results of the presidential election. Nearly a dozen Republican senators said on Saturday they plan to object to the results on Wednesday, citing false allegations of widespread electoral fraud promoted by President Trump and his allies.
Before Sunday’s proceedings, the House’s weapons sergeant and the Capitol’s assistant physician sent directions to new and old members of the House, according to Roll Call. The traditional quorum call, new members taking office and speaker election are being held in seven groups, significantly prolonging the day’s events.
The Assembly was called at noon, with the election of a new Mayor as the first order of the day. Members will take office after the election, which may extend until Sunday night. Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, appointed Pelosi as a speaker, calling her a “resilient leader”.
“Nancy Pelosi believes that our sacred mission is to continue America’s long, necessary and majestic march towards a more perfect union,” he said in a speech in the House before the vote began.
In a striking symbol of how the virus complicated procedures, a special section of the Chamber of the Chamber was closed in plexiglass so that three legislators in a “quarantined state” could vote. Dr. Brian Monahan, Congressional attending physician, said that “the greatest possible safeguards have been put in place, including separate and improved ventilation in this space and separate retention facilities for any Members using” the separate space. Members using the space must be negative for the virus.
The special accommodations were also a reflection of the thin margin in the speaker vote. Democrats will start the 117th Congress with 222 members, just four over the 218 limit required for a majority, with a race in New York still undecided.
Proxy voting, which allowed members to cast votes while they were not physically present on Capitol Hill, expired at the end of the last Congress. The new Chamber will have to vote on the extension of the proxy vote. This means that anyone who misses Sunday will not be able to vote in the election of the president.
In the Senate, which also met at noon for the start of the 117th Congress, Vice President Mike Pence administered the oath of office to pairs of new and re-elected members, offering elbows to each.
“To say that the 117th Congress will meet at a challenging time would really be an understatement,” said Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, after members took office. “From political division to a deadly pandemic for opponents around the world, the obstacles before us are many and they are serious. But there are also many reasons for hope. An optimistic and positive spirit has been one of the most distinctive business cards of ours country since our early days, and with safe and effective vaccines being distributed across the country every day, I would say that 2021 already looks brilliant. “
The Senate is starting its new session with Republicans holding a small majority, but whether the GOP will retain control will be determined by two run-off elections in Georgia on Tuesday.
Before starting work on Sunday, Pelosi noted the challenges the new Congress will face in trying to deal with the economic turmoil caused by the pandemic, as well as the ongoing public health crisis, and thanked the Democratic caucus for naming it to lead the Chamber for another term.
“I am confident that the election of the speaker today will show a united Democratic caucus, ready to face the challenges to come, and that we are prepared to put our country on a new path, starting with the Electoral College meeting on Wednesday,” she said in a letter to her fellow Democrats.
House and Senate will meet again on January 6 to count the votes of the Electoral College and reaffirm the elected President Joe Bidenvictory of.