Huffman unanimously elected new ranking member of Natural Resources

The House Democratic Caucus voted unanimously to make Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) the new top Democrat in the House Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday, a day after a key committee vote passed.

Huffman will succeed Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who has led the panel’s Democrats since 2015 but announced he would step down for his position. final deadline earlier this month after initially promising a two-year bid at the top. Grijalva endorsed Rep. Melanie Stansbury (DN.M.), ranking member of the panel’s oversight subcommittee.

Stansbury dropped out of the race for first place in the middle overwhelming support for Huffman, who first announced his leadership candidacy in late November before Grijalva announced he would step back. Huffman won a Democratic Leadership and Policy Committee vote on Monday, which serves as a recommendation for the broader caucus and is usually predictive of the outcome of the entire caucus.

“I am incredibly grateful to the many partners who have supported me on my journey: tribes across the country, environmental allies and the vast majority of my colleagues with whom I have served here in the House,” Huffman said in a statement

“I will work day by day to honor the trust they have placed in me to lead this committee. We’ve weathered many storms together, and I think we’re more prepared than ever to face what lies ahead in the next Congress,” added the California Democrat. “This is a team sport, and I’m excited and ready to lead this team.” .

Huffman’s promotion to the committee comes as part of a broader overhaul of Democratic leadership on House committees after the party. Else election 2024s, amid concerns about whether new leaders are needed to reverse the party’s national fortunes.

In addition to Grijalva’s resignation, Rep. Jerry Nadler (DN.Y.) gave up first place in the House Judiciary Committee against Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), while Agriculture Committee Ranking Member David Scott (D-Ga.) lost yesterday. Voting of the steering committee to Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.), using it to become the first to lose outright to a challenger. Craig also won the full caucus vote for the ranking member position on Tuesday.

Despite those victories by younger and less senior members of the committee, Monday’s leadership vote also featured Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who is 74 years old. announced a cancer diagnosis, to prevail against Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DN.Y.) for first place on the Oversight Committee, which Raskin vacated for judicial office.

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