The House Democratic Caucus is a congressional caucus composed of all Democratic representatives in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, voting and

non-voting Abstention is a term in election procedure for when a participant in a Voting, vote either does not go to vote (on election day) or, in parliamentary procedure, is present during the vote but does not cast a ballot. Abstention must be contrast ...

, and is responsible for nominating and electing the Democratic Party leadership in the chamber. In its roles as a

party conference The terms party conference ( UK English), political convention ( US and Canadian English), and party congress usually refer to a general meeting of a political party. The conference is attended by certain delegates who represent the party memb ...

, the

caucus A caucus is a group or meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to ...

writes and enforces rules of conduct and discipline for its members, approves committee assignments, and serves as the primary forum for development of party policy and legislative priorities. It hosts weekly meetings for these purposes and to communicate the party's message to members. When the caucus holds the majority of seats, it is usually led by the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives who is assisted on the floor by the House majority leader and the party's chief whip. When in the minority, it is led by the House minority leader, assisted by the chief whip. The caucus has a Caucus chairman and Caucus vice-chair (formerly called the secretary). For the 119th Congress,

Hakeem Jeffries Hakeem Sekou Jeffries ( ; born August 4, 1970) is an American politician and attorney who has served as Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, House minority leader and House Democratic Caucus#Leaders of the House Democrati ...

was elected as the minority leader, Katherine Clark became the

minority whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline (that members of the party vote according to the party platform rather than their constituents, individual conscience or donors) in a legislature. Whips ...

and Pete Aguilar was chosen as the Caucus chairman.

Current hierarchy

Effective with the start of the 119th Congress, the chain of command conference leadership is as follows (from highest to lowest): *

( NY) as House Minority Leader (Caucus Leader) * Katherine Clark ( MA) as House Minority Whip * Pete Aguilar ( CA) as Caucus Chairman * Ted Lieu ( CA) as Caucus Vice Chair

Leadership history

The House Democratic Caucus, through its institutional antecedent, the

Democratic-Republican The Democratic-Republican Party (also referred to by historians as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party), was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early 1790s. It championed l ...

caucus, was established on April 2, 1796, to stop a treaty with Great Britain which unfairly treated American sailors. For many years, through 1820, it nominated presidential candidates (before the era of national nominating conventions). Since 2023, the House Democratic leader has been Rep.

of New York (the first

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

congressional party leader in U.S. history). He was elected to succeed longtime Democratic leader and the first woman speaker of the House in U.S. history

Nancy Pelosi Nancy Patricia Pelosi ( ; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who was the List of Speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives, serving from 2007 to 2011 an ...

. At the Organizational Meeting on November 18, 2008, of the Democratic Caucus for the 111th Congress, Representative John B. Larson (D-

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

) was elected Caucus chairman by acclamation. The election was presided over by the outgoing chairman of the Democratic Caucus for the 110th Congress, former representative

Rahm Emanuel Rahm Israel Emanuel (; born November 29, 1959) is an American politician, advisor, diplomat, and former investment banker who most recently served as List of ambassadors of the United States to Japan, United States ambassador to Japan from 2022 ...

(D-

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

). Rep. Larson officially assumed the position of chairman on the first day of the 111th Congress, January 3, 2009. After his election as chairman at the Organizational Meeting on November 18, Chairman Larson presided over the election of Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

), who defeated Representative Marcy Kaptur of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

by a vote count of 175 to 67. Rep. Becerra likewise assumed his vice-chairmanship on January 3.

Leaders of the House Democratic Caucus

Notes

List of chairs

Chairs are currently limited to two consecutive terms.

List of vice-chairs

The vice-chair of the Democratic Caucus ranks just below the

Chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. It may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

of the House Democratic Caucus. In addition to other duties, the vice-chair has a seat on the Steering and Policy Committee. * Mary Rose Oakar (1987–1989) *

Steny Hoyer Steny Hamilton Hoyer ( ; born June 14, 1939) is an American politician and retired attorney who has served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for since 1981. He also served as House Majority Leader from 2007 to 20 ...

(1989) * Vic Fazio (1989–1995) * Barbara B. Kennelly (1995–1999) * Bob Menendez (1999–2003) * Jim Clyburn (2003–2006) * John B. Larson (2006–2009) * Xavier Becerra (2009–2012) * Joe Crowley (2012–2017) * Linda Sánchez (2017–2019) * Katherine Clark (2019–2021) * Pete Aguilar (2021–2023) * Ted Lieu (2023–present)

List of secretaries

The office of secretary of the Democratic Caucus preceded the office of vice-chair. Until its elimination in 1987, the office of secretary was reserved for a female member of the House.''Congressional Women'': On the Secretary position
/ref> * Chase G. Woodhouse (1949–1951) * Edna F. Kelly (1953–1957, 1964–1965) * Leonor K. Sullivan (1959–1964, 1965–1975) * Patsy Mink (1975–1977) * Shirley Chisholm (1977–1981) * Geraldine Ferraro (1981–1985) * Mary Rose Oakar (1985–1987)

References

External links

Official site of the Democratic Caucus
{{DEFAULTSORT:Democratic Caucus Of The United States House Of Representatives Caucuses of the United States Congress Caucus of the United States House of Representatives Leaders of the United States House of Representatives