First Female Speaker of the House, a Fierce Opponent of Trump
Concluding Over 40 Years in American Politics Next Year
Nancy Pelosi (85), a member of the House of Representatives and considered one of the most influential female politicians in American history, has announced that she will not run in next year's midterm elections, effectively declaring her retirement from politics. On the 6th (local time), Pelosi released a video message to voters in the San Francisco area of California, stating, "I will not seek re-election to the federal Congress," and added, "With a grateful heart, I look forward to my final year as your representative."
Nancy Pelosi (85), considered one of the most influential female politicians in American history. Photo by AP News Agency
Pelosi was the first woman in U.S. congressional history to serve as Speaker of the House and was regarded as a powerful figure within the Democratic Party. Born as the youngest of seven children in the family of Thomas D'Alesandro, a former mayor of Baltimore, Pelosi majored in political science at Trinity College in Washington, D.C. After marrying investor Paul Pelosi, whom she met during college, she moved to San Francisco. Together, they have five children.
She entered Congress by winning a special election for the House of Representatives in 1987 and gradually rose to the leadership. At the end of 2002, she became the House Democratic Leader, and after the Democratic Party's sweeping victory in the 2006 midterm elections, she was elected Speaker of the House (2007-2011). In 2010, she led the party as the overwhelming majority and contributed to the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), known as 'Obamacare.' During her second term as Speaker from 2019 to 2023, Pelosi maintained unity within the narrowly majority Democratic Party and helped pass key legislation for the Biden administration, such as the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in 2022.
On February 5, 2019, during President Trump's State of the Union address to Congress, Nancy Pelosi drew attention by giving what is known as the "mocking applause." Photo by AP Yonhap News
In particular, during the last decade of her political career, she frequently clashed with President Donald Trump. When the Democratic Party regained the House majority in the 2018 midterm elections and many lawmakers demanded Trump's impeachment, Pelosi downplayed Trump by saying, "He isn't even worth it." Although ultimately rejected in the Senate, she played a pivotal role as his political opponent by passing impeachment articles against President Trump twice in the House, in December 2019 and January 2021. After the Democratic Party lost its House majority in the 2022 midterm elections, she stepped down from party leadership but retained her seat. Despite her long-standing relationship with former President Joe Biden, it is known that, following Biden's poor performance in a televised debate against Trump during his 2024 re-election bid, Pelosi played a significant behind-the-scenes role in persuading him to withdraw from the race.
Pelosi's announcement not to run comes just after the Democratic Party's victories in local elections-including the New York mayoral and Virginia gubernatorial races-held on the 4th, which, though small in scale, appear to have influenced the timing of her decision with next year's midterm elections in mind. Her retirement announcement also followed the confirmation, through a vote held on the 4th, of a ballot initiative for redistricting in California. With overwhelming support from local voters, the measure to redraw California's 52 federal House districts in favor of the Democratic Party was passed. On the same day, President Trump, when asked at the White House about Pelosi's announcement, said, "She was a tremendous burden on the country. I thought she was a wicked woman who did a terrible job," adding, "She caused enormous damage to the country and its honor," expressing his lingering resentment.
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