Nancy Pelosi announces retirement from Congress

by · UPI

Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the first woman Speaker of the House, announced Thursday after 40 years representing California in the U.S. Congress that she will not seek re-election.

Pelosi, 85, posted a video on X saying that she is retiring. She expressed her love of San Francisco in the nearly 6 minute video and mentioned her titles of Speaker of the House, leader and whip, but "there has been no greater honor for me than to stand on the House floor and say I speak for the people of San Francisco."

Pelosi's current term is her first in a non-leadership role since 2001. Her retirement comes just two days after the passage of California's ballot measure to redraw its Congressional districts, which she pushed for. She raised tens of millions of dollars for the measure, a person familiar with the efforts told CNN. She worked with California Gov. Gavin Newsom to get Prop 50 passed, and it won with 63% of the vote.

"I will not be seeking reelection to Congress. With a grateful heart, I look forward to my final year of service as your proud representative," she said. "As we go forward, my message to the city I love is this: San Francisco, know your power. We have made history, we have made progress, we have always led the way. And now we must continue to do so by remaining full participants in our democracy and fighting for the American ideals we hold dear."

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Pelosi grew up in Baltimore, in the Little Italy neighborhood. Her father, Thomas D'Alesandro Jr., was a mayor of Baltimore and then U.S. Congressman representing Maryland. Her brother, Thomas D'Alesandro III, also served as mayor of the city.

After getting married in 1962, she began volunteering for the Democrats in California, eventually rising to state chair. She was elected to Congress in a special election in 1987, becoming minority whip in 2001, and minority leader in 2002. She was Speaker of the House from 2007-2011 and again from 2019-2023. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Joe Biden in 2024.

Pelosi was known for almost never losing a vote on the House floor. To achieve her goals, she would block her rivals from powerful committees as well as use her keen negotiating skills, CNN reported. She often told Democrats to run on a platform of challenging her if it would help them win.

Before her retirement announcement, Democrats in Washington were praising her and her work as historic.

"Nancy Pelosi is an iconic, legendary, transformational figure, who has done so many things over so many years to make life better for so many people," Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters Monday.

In her latest role as representative with no leadership responsibilities, she was able to advise younger representatives and continue fundraising for the party. In last year's presidential race, Pelosi was the most influential at convincing Biden to drop out of the race after an painful debate performance. Democrats hoped allowing Vice President Kamala Harris to run would prevent Donald Trump from winning, though it didn't work.

After years of demonization from Republicans, Pelosi's husband Paul paid a price in 2022, when a man broke into their San Francisco home and attacked him with a hammer. It wasn't long after the attack that she stepped down from leadership.

In her floor speech announcing the decision, Pelosi urged the sides to put aside their differences.

"American Democracy is majestic -- but it is fragile," Pelosi said. "Many of us here have witnessed its fragility firsthand -- tragically, in this chamber. And so, Democracy must be forever defended from forces that wish it harm."