Calls grow to replace Jeffries and Schumer after wins
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
After Democrats flipped both chambers, a petition to replace House leader Hakeem Jeffries passed 500,000 signatures.
The fight is whether winning earns leaders another term or demands a bolder agenda.
Background
Hakeem Jeffries is the House Democratic Leader and was in line to become the first Black Speaker of the House; Chuck Schumer has led Senate Democrats for nearly a decade. After Democrats won the House and Senate in the November 2026 midterms, progressive groups, newly elected senators and a Change.org petition argued the party's leadership should change rather than be rewarded automatically. Critics cite a lack of vision, reluctance to confront Trump, continued corporate PAC money and deference to the Israeli government; Schumer's March 2025 help in advancing a Republican funding bill to avert a shutdown had already drawn resignation calls.
How it unfolded
- Mar 2025Schumer faces calls to resign from progressive groups after helping Republicans keep the government open rather than risk a shutdown.
- Jun 30, 2026New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani celebrates democratic socialist primary wins over establishment Democratic candidates.
- Sep 2026Nicole Whitted, an author and social media creator, starts the Change.org petition 'House Democrats: CHOOSE A NEW SPEAKER'.
- Nov 3, 2026Democrats win the midterms, flipping both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
- Nov 4, 2026Whitted says the petition is at almost 20,000 signatures; Senator Chris Van Hollen says no one should commit to a next Democratic leader without a conversation about a bold agenda.
- Nov 5, 2026The petition to replace Jeffries as Speaker reaches 500,000 signatures, according to its creator; Newsweek seeks comment from Jeffries.
Key terms
- Speaker of the House
- The presiding officer of the US House of Representatives, who leads the chamber and its majority party.
- PAC
- A U.S. tax-exempt organization that pools campaign contributions and donates them to campaigns for or against candidates, ballot measures, or legislation.
- shutdown
- A government shutdown is when funding legislation is not enacted in time, halting non-essential federal services and furloughing workers.
Source: Wikipedia
Who’s saying what
- Petition
- Creator Nicole Whitted says Jeffries is 'simply not the right choice,' citing corporate and pro-Israel lobbying ties and arguing the Speaker should represent voters, not the establishment.
- Jeffries
- Jeffries says Americans 'don't want us to get even' but want results, and that Democrats should govern on the affordability message they ran and won on.
- Senators
- Van Hollen says no one should be anointed leader without a bold 'kitchen table agenda,' while Senator-elect Peggy Flanagan says it is 'time for new leadership.'
- Support
- Senator Ruben Gallego says leaders who 'bring home the bacon' and deliver victory deserve to stay, crediting Schumer with recruiting candidates who flipped Republican seats.
Still unverified
The 500,000-signature count is according to the petition's creator. Kalshi gave Schumer a 79 percent chance of keeping his job, and no senator has announced a challenge to him.