The calls point to a fundamental disconnect between most House Democrats, who are likely to vote for Jeffries, and at least a portion of their grassroots base. An incoming House Democrat told Axios they have received “about 150” calls since the election urging them not to vote for Jeffries, while a senior House Democrat said they received “over 500” in the last two days and were also asked about it in person at a Chamber of Commerce meeting. “I think our numbers are higher,” another House Democrat said. “It's our No. 1 issue, and it's not close.”
Jeffries is in pole position to become speaker after Democrats' landslide victory, which is set to give them a massive majority of more than 250 seats. He has had unanimous support from his caucus since becoming leader in 2022 and has never had a single House Democrat defect from him in a speaker vote. Leadership elections are set for Nov. 18-19, with the floor vote on Jan. 3.
But the last speaker ballot was in January 2025, right before Democrats' grassroots base began railing against party leadership for what they perceived as insufficient resistance to the Trump administration. Ezra Levin, co-executive director of the progressive group Indivisible, said in a statement that “Democrats in both chambers can't go back to business-as-usual politics. People want leadership that's ready to join the rest of us in this new era of politics.”
A Democratic chief of staff whose office got about 300 calls told Axios: “Lots of people are saying make Jamie Raskin speaker.” Raskin, a Maryland Democrat and the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, became a grassroots star after serving on the Jan. 6 committee. His associations with pro-Israel groups and corporate PACs have long drawn criticism from the left. Raskin has expressed no interest in mounting a bid; a spokesperson for his office declined to comment.
One House Democrat who received between 300 and 400 calls said actor Mark Ruffalo's post on X calling for "a new speaker" has driven much of the outreach. The post links to a Change.org petition that says Jeffries "is simply not the right choice." The petition had nearly 900,000 signatures as of Friday. The page includes a disclosure that the person who started it "receives compensation" as part of a "Change Ambassadors" program, which has raised eyebrows on Capitol Hill.
Despite the pressure, Jeffries remains the clear favorite, lawmakers say. No one has indicated they would run against him. A fourth Democrat, whose office took about 50 calls, said the odds of anyone else becoming speaker are "none." A senior progressive called the chance of Jeffries not securing the gavel "0.0%." Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut said he has not received any calls and that "Jeffries absolutely will be speaker." Rep. Sam Liccardo of California said he will support Jeffries, adding that talk of a challenger is "just selling tickets to a circus with no tent."
Some incoming members, however, are not committing. Don Leonard, an Ohio Democrat who won a seat carried by President Trump by 10 percentage points, told a local outlet he will be “shopping for a new leader” if Jeffries does not commit to changing his pro-Israel position. Several other incoming Democrats in red districts declined to state a firm position to Axios.
Jeffries' allies say they are confident they can get enough Democrats to a "yes" even if he does not enjoy the unanimous vote he has had in the past.