Nancy Pelosi reclaimed the title of House speaker today.
She was nominated for the post around 12:45 p.m. Eastern after the new Democratic majority arrived in Washington and took over control of the House of Representatives. The vote ended just before 2 p.m. local time.
The Republican Conference chair nominated Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) for the Speaker of the House position.
The House of Representatives convened at noon to kick off the new session of Congress.
Pelosi discussed what it will be like to work with President Donald Trump as the next speaker in an interview that aired Thursday morning, saying, "I don't know if he knows how to deal with women in power and women with strength, but we'll see."
Pelosi added, "Let's hope for the best in that regard because again it is a new day for many people in Congress and in Washington, DC and in the country."
A small, but vocal, faction of Democrats initially worked to derail Pelosi's bid to become the next Speaker following the 2018 midterm elections, but no challenger against her ever emerged and she ultimately succeed in winning over many of her critics.
The longtime House Democratic leader is now on the verge of winning back the position of power she previously held when she served as the first and so far only female House speaker from 2007 to 2011.
In the role of speaker, Pelosi will be one of the most visible members of the Democratic Party to regularly face off against President Donald Trump and will preside over an emboldened and energized Democratic majority that is poised to launch aggressive oversight of the President and his administration.
One of the most immediate challenges that will confront Pelosi as leader of the new House Democratic majority will be the fight over the President's long-promised border wall that triggered a standoff between congressional Democrats and the President and resulted in a partial government shutdown, which is now in its second week.
Pelosi has already outlined a plan for Democrats to pass a legislative package later in the day on Thursday to re-open shuttered parts of the government. Contrary to the President's demands for $5 billion for a border wall, however, the legislation does not provide any new wall funding, setting up an early confrontation between the new Democratic majority and the administration.
