Politics
NEW: Dem Lawmaker Refuses To Rule Out Plot To Install Hakeem Jeffries As President
U.S. Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA) refused to rule out the possibility of installing House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) or another Democratic Party speaker as president should Democrats retake the House in 2026.
The question came up during Mark DeSaulnier’s (D-CA) virtual “End of Year Town Hall” this past Monday, during which he took questions from viewers on Democratic Party policy goals and plans should they retake the House.
“The next question comes from Peter on YouTube. If enough Republicans resign before the midterms, and if the president is impeached, would the VP also be impeached?” District Director Janessa Oriol relayed to the congressman.
“Those are separate actions. So if the president was impeached, the VP would replace him. So if everything you said took place, then if the VP was impeached, the speaker who, if we were in the majority, would be a Democrat, would become president of the United States,” DeSaulnier responded. The then cautioned that such a scenario would likely be a “reach,” but refused to rule it out entirely, saying, “it’s possible.”
The current U.S. presidential line of succession, as established by the Constitution and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, is the vice president first, followed by the speaker of the house. President pro tempore of the Senate is next, followed by eligible cabinet secretaries in order of department creation.
In the hypothetical scenario where Democrats retake the House majority in the 2026 midterms and elect Hakeem Jeffries as Speaker, installing him (or any Democrat) as president would require both President Trump and Vice President Vance to be removed from office, typically through impeachment and conviction for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.”
Democrats would be forced to cross an incredibly high bar to get this outcome, however, as conviction and removal from office requires a two-thirds super majority in the U.S. Senate. Democrats were unable to secure convictions in either impeachment trial launched against President Trump in his first term, despite the balance of power in the upper chamber being much more in their favor than it is now.
Jeffries is widely viewed as the likely House speaker should Democrats regain control of the chamber next year, which is likely given traditional midterm election trends. Should Jeffries not be elected in such a scenario, Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA), the current minority whip, and Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) the current Caucus Chairman, would stand as the next most likely to assume the role.
