House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) could get caught in the undertow of the very blue wave he hopes to ride into power this November as a growing number of Democratic candidates tell Axios they can't commit to backing his leadership.
Why it matters: It's a stark reversal from Jeffries' virtually untouchable standing in the Democratic Party just a few years ago — and a sign that his path to the speakership may be rockier than previously thought.
- Jeffries and his allies maintain they are not remotely worried about a mass defection, pointing out that — even in the minority — he has had to endure 20 speakers' ballots and hasn't lost a Democratic vote.
- But this crop of freshmen may provide the first chink in that heretofore impenetrable armor, with a bloc of genuinely viable candidates making clear that voting for Jeffries as speaker is not a given if the Democrats take the House.
State of play: Axios reported last fall that more than 80 Democratic House candidates across the country were either non-committal on backing Jeffries' leadership or outright opposed to it. It's only gotten worse for him since then.
- Mai Vang, the leading progressive primary challenger to Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.), previously said she would "support the person that my future colleagues elect as our leader."
- But in an unprompted statement last week, she told Axios: "The Democratic Party and its leadership—Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries—have failed to mobilize meaningful opposition to Trump's illegal war and their silence as AIPAC and corporations flood Congressional primaries with millions of dollars is deafening."
- "I cannot support this kind of leadership," Vang said. "If we want to defeat Trump and rebuild trust with working Americans, we need new leadership and a new direction."
Between the lines: Vang is the kind of candidate the Democratic establishment can't simply dismiss as an also-ran.
- Running on a wave of generational change against older lawmakers like 81-year-old Matsui, Vang, a 41-year-old Sacramento City Council member, had raised $282,000 as of the end of 2025 to Matsui's $750,000.
- One House Democrat told Axios that Matsui has privately expressed concerns about her reelection prospects, adding that she has "got to pay attention."
- "Our campaign is off to a strong start — securing the California Democratic Party's endorsement, along with support from labor and a supermajority of Mai Vang's own colleagues," said Matsui spokesperson Kevin Liao, adding that "momentum is only growing."
Zoom out: New retirement announcements and congressional map redraws since October have spawned open primaries featuring yet more candidates who are not yet sold on — or outright hostile to — Jeffries' leadership.
- "Most Democrats are agreed that he's been failing to meet the moment," said Adam Hamawy, a candidate in New Jersey's 12th district, saying he is "looking for someone that's gonna stand up to the administration."
- Claire Valdez, a New York State Assembly member backed by Zohran Mamdani in her bid to succeed retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.), said in an interview with Axios that "there would need to be some conversations" when asked if she would support Jeffries' leadership.
- "I've never met Leader Jeffries, I've never had conversations with him," said Utah state Sen. Nate Blouin, the Congressional Progressive Caucus-backed candidate for a new, safely blue district in Salt Lake City.
Blouin said he looks forward to "voting for someone who is committed to fighting for our communities, our shared priorities, making sure that we are moving in a direction that is aligned with the American people on foreign policy."
- "I think those are critical concerns," he added.
The other side: "I've seen real fight coming from our caucus and that matters," said New York Assembly member Alex Bores, a candidate to replace retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.).
- "There's room to grow, but I'm encouraged," he said, adding that Jeffries is "doing a difficult, thankless job" and that he would support his fellow New Yorker's leadership.
- Jeffries' members credit him with navigating multiple government shutdowns and keeping his caucus largely unified.
Jeffries spokesperson Justin Charmol said in a statement to Axios: "Leader Jeffries is focused on addressing the affordability crisis, stopping the bombing in the Middle East, reining in ICE and taking back the House to stop Republican extremists from destroying America."
- "Beyond that, we have zero interest in a frivolous story from the same outlet that once sensationally claimed Leader Jeffries was going to face a serious primary. How did that work out?"
- New York City Council member Chi Ossé filed paperwork last November to challenge Jeffries, but withdrew after failing to secure an endorsement from the Democratic Socialists of America.
Reality check: Even House Democrats who have privately chafed against or questioned Jeffries' leadership at times have also told Axios they think he is secure in his leadership and that nobody would dare to challenge him for speaker.
- Some anti-Jeffries candidates have proposed alternatives: Anabel Mendoza, a progressive candidate in Illinois' 7th District, told Axios she wants to see Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) in leadership, saying she is "10 toes down on what matters."
- But there are no indications that any of the progressives rumored as potential challengers to Jeffries would actually make that leap.
The bottom line: Depending on whether the Democrats win the House and by how many seats, these progressives' fates in their primaries could likely determine whether Jeffries waltzes to the speakership or faces a repeat of Kevin McCarthy's 15-ballot slog in 2023.
The bottom line: Whether Jeffries waltzes to the speakership or faces a repeat of Kevin McCarthy's 15-ballot slog in 2023 would depend on how these progressives fare in their primaries and, of course, whether he wins the House and by how many seats.
- The first test will be on Tuesday in Illinois, where each open primary has at least one candidate who has refused to commit to supporting Jeffries' leadership. Some, like Illinois' 9th District, have multiple Jeffries skeptics.
- Some candidates said conversations about Jeffries' leadership will likely look drastically different if Democrats don't end up taking the House.
- "Obviously, if we can't win the majority this year, that's a problem," said Jason Knapp, a candidate in Virginia's 1st District.
