Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats hold a narrow 10-seat majority over Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives.
With just a razor-thin majority, Nancy Pelosi can’t afford too many defectors among Congressional Democrats.
And this Democrat’s defection just caught Nancy Pelosi off guard and handed her an unexpected defeat.
Democrat incumbent Rita Hart (D-IA) lost to Republican challenger Mariannette Miller-Meeks by just six votes in the November 6 election.
After an official recount was held, the state of Iowa certified the results and a bipartisan commission agreed that Miller-Meeks won the election.
But as the U.S. House decides who it seats as members, Rita Hart petitioned the Democrat-controlled House Administration Committee, an action blessed by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, to overturn the results and officially seat her in Congress.
However, some Congressional Democrats aren’t happy about trying to overturn the election.
“Losing a House election by six votes is painful for Democrats,” said Democrat Congressman Dean Phillips.
“But overturning it in the House would be even more painful for America. Just because a majority can, does not mean a majority should,” Phillips said, letting Pelosi and Hart know that he does not support their effort to steal an election.
But Phillips isn’t alone in his opposition.
Another Democrat texted POLITICO’s Playbook authors and added that the party would pay a punishing price in the 2022 midterm elections and lose their majority if Democrats steal the election in Iowa’s Second Congressional District.
“He’s far from alone. Another Democrat in a tough seat texted us this morning with concerns that the blowback in competitive districts next year could be fierce. “Absent overwhelming evidence, it would be insane to overturn the results of the Iowa election,” the member said.
“It would be wrong on principle. It would also be political malpractice. While we would gain one seat, we would lose a lot more next year,” POLITICO reported.
Of course, the irony is that Democrats are now trying to steal an election after spending the past few months accusing Donald Trump of trying to “steal” the Presidency from Joe Biden when Trump was just making legal challenges, not trying to outright steal an election.
But if Democrats are going to pull off this steal, Pelosi can’t afford more than three defections on the floor.
And two Democrats have already declared their opposition to overturning the results in Iowa’s Second Congressional District.
Political Animal News will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this ongoing story.
