Who is Hakeem Jeffries?
Hakeem Jeffries (born August 4, 1970) is an American politician and lawyer who has represented the 8th congressional district of New York since 2013.
| Name | Hakeem Jeffries |
| Date of Birth | August 4, 1970 |
| Wife | Kennisandra Arciniegas |
| Gender | Male |
He is a Democrat who represents a district in New York City that includes sections of eastern Brooklyn and southwestern Queens.
He worked as a corporate lawyer with Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, Viacom, and CBS before running for and serving in the New York State Assembly from 2007 to 2012. He represented the 57th Assembly district. Since 2019, Jeffries has served as the chair of the House Democratic Caucus.
Hakeem Jeffries Career
Jeffries has served in Congress since 2013, representing New York’s 8th Congressional District.
He is a lawyer by profession, having received his Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law. He is a native of Brooklyn. Before going into private practice, Jeffries clerked for Judge Harold Baer Jr of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
He subsequently served in the New York State Assembly for six years before moving to the United States Capitol.
Since becoming Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, Jeffries has quickly risen through the ranks of Congress to become the fifth highest-ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives.
He has also served as the Whip for the Congressional Black Caucus, so he has a lot of leadership experience in the House. He’s also created a name for himself as the first African-American impeachment manager, overseeing Donald Trump’s Senate impeachment trial in 2020.
Aside from his political views, Jeffries has been at the vanguard of some of Congress’s most significant changes in recent years, spearheading the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and serving as the Democratic co-sponsor of the bipartisan FIRST STEP Act in 2018.
In fact, Jeffries has co-sponsored a number of initiatives that have gotten bipartisan support as well as within the Democratic Party, showing that he could be the appropriate person to help Congress overcome its current chasm.
Is Jeffries the appropriate man for the job?
Democrats believe, according to The Washington Post, that Pelosi’s successor should be “equally as historic,” implying that they are heavily considering someone from a minority community to take the reins. If Jeffries is granted the gavel, he will be the first Black speaker of the House, coinciding with the election of America’s first female Vice President.
And it looks that he has some backers. “‘He’s clever, smooth, and brave all at the same time.’ If we’re fighting for something, I want Hakeem Jeffries on my side because he’ll take a battle to the mat “According to The Washington Post, one member of Congress.
Jeffries might help unite not just the divided Democratic party, but the entire House, because he already has extensive leadership experience and some friends on the other side of the aisle. Kevin McCarthy, on the other hand, is someone with whom he does not get along. According to this POLITICO report, the two former friends “don’t have much of a connection now beyond their verbal attacks at news conferences.”
That could be a problem if Democrats manage to keep control of the House, but Jeffries still has allies on the other side of the aisle. That could be the most important factor in moving things along in the House, especially if Democrats are serious about keeping the White House in 2024, whether or not Biden stands for reelection.
