Hakeem Jeffries/Image: AP
He first ran for public office at 29 and lost two campaigns for state government before challenging a 30-year congressional incumbent in 2012.
Before entering Congress, Jeffries worked as a corporate lawyer and served in the New York State Assembly, according to the news agency. The incumbent stepped aside, allowing Jeffries to win the seat.
Hakeem Jeffries is poised to become the first Black Speaker of the US House of Representatives after Democrats secured majority control of the chamber in the 2026 midterm elections, setting up a historic change in congressional leadership. The 56-year-old New York lawmaker is expected to be formally elected when the new Congress convenes on January 3. Jeffries’ elevation would mark a milestone in the history of the US Congress, more than 150 years after Joseph Rainey became the first Black American elected to the House in 1870.
This is a patriotic one,” Jeffries said, adding that voters had called for significant political change. “We hear you,” he said. He has said that witnessing the effects of the crack epidemic in his neighbourhood influenced his decision to enter public service. In an interview with The Associated Press during the campaign, Jeffries said his upbringing gave him a desire to improve conditions for working people who remained in their communities despite difficult circumstances.
The speakership is the only congressional leadership position established by the US Constitution and places its holder second in the presidential line of succession. “This is not a partisan moment. “We’re going to work hard to deliver on the dramatic change that you deserve. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Jeffries grew up in a family with an Air Force veteran father and a social worker mother. Jeffries will lead a Democratic majority facing pressure to deliver on economic concerns while scrutinising President Donald Trump’s administration.
In a letter to fellow Democrats on Wednesday, he outlined three priorities for the next Congress: affordability, accountability and American values.