Hakeem Jeffries: American politician (born 1970)
Hakeem Sekou Jeffries (/ˌhɑːˈkiːm/; born August 4, 1970) is an American politician.
He is the U.S. Representative for New York's 8th congressional district since 2013. He is a member of the Democratic Party. In 2023, he became the House Minority Leader, the first African-American to hold this position or to be a congressional party leader.
Hakeem Jeffries | |
|---|---|
 | |
| House Minority Leader | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2023 | |
| Deputy | Katherine Clark |
| Preceded by | Kevin McCarthy |
| Leader of the House Democratic Caucus | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2023 | |
| Deputy | Katherine Clark |
| Preceded by | Nancy Pelosi |
| Chair of the House Democratic Caucus | |
| In office January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2023 | |
| Leader | Nancy Pelosi |
| Preceded by | Joe Crowley |
| Succeeded by | Pete Aguilar |
| Co-Chair of the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee | |
| In office January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2019 Serving with Cheri Bustos and David Cicilline | |
| Leader | Nancy Pelosi |
| Preceded by | Steve Israel (Chair) |
| Succeeded by | Matt Cartwright Debbie Dingell Ted Lieu |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 8th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Edolphus Towns (Redistricting) |
| Member of the New York State Assembly from the 57th district | |
| In office January 1, 2007 – December 31, 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Roger Green |
| Succeeded by | Walter Mosley |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Hakeem Sekou Jeffries August 4, 1970 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Kennisandra Arciniegas |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Leonard Jeffries (uncle) |
| Education |
|
| Website | House website |
Personal life
Jeffries was born in Brooklyn, New York City. He studied at Binghamton University, Georgetown University and New York University. In 1997, he married Kennisandra Arciniegas. They have two children.
Political career
Jeffries was elected and reelected, serving in the New York State Assembly for a Brooklyn district from 2007 to 2012. During this time, he introduced over 70 bills.
On November 28, 2018, Jeffries defeated California Congresswoman Barbara Lee to become chair of the House Democratic Caucus. His term began when the new Congress was sworn in on January 3, 2019.
On November 30, 2022, Jeffries was elected to lead the Democratic Party caucus in the House of Representatives in 2023, replacing Nancy Pelosi.
When Kevin McCarthy was elected Speaker, Jeffries handed him the gavel after a 15-minute speech. The speech was called the "ABCs of Democracy". The video of Jeffries's alphabet speech has been viewed over 2.4 million times on social media alone.
References
Other websites
- Congressman Hakeem Jeffries official U.S. House website
- Hakeem Jeffries for Congress official campaign website
- Hakeem Jeffries wiki quotes
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Hakeem Jeffries at Curlie
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
- Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Vote Smart
- Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
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