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Representative Nancy Pelosi is expected to announce the path of her career, whether that be retirement or reelection, following a November 4 special election on a congressional redistricting ballot measure, a Pelosi adviser told Politico. Ian Krager, a spokesperson for Pelosi added via an email to Newsweek on Wednesday, that “Speaker Pelosi is fully focused on her mission to win the 'Yes' on 50 special election in California on November 4. She urges all Californians to join in that mission on the path to taking back the House for the Democrats.” If she does announce retirement, there are several Democrats who may be lining up to fill her seat, with State Senator Scott Wiener announcing his candidacy on Wednesday morning. Why It Matters Pelosi, 85, is serving her 20th term representing her San Francisco district in Congress. She has been applauded by many in the Democratic party for her storied career and pushback against President Donald Trump in both terms. However, some critics within the party, particularly more progressive and younger Democrats, have called for her to pass the torch. The question of her future comes as California politics are in the spotlight, as Governor Gavin Newsom is term-limited and viewed as a likely presidential hopeful, and former Representative Katie Porter is campaigning to replace him amid viral clips of her berating a staffer and another cutting short a tense interview. Republicans currently hold a narrow 219-213 majority in the House of Representatives. Traditionally, the party that does not hold the White House tends to do better in midterm elections. In 2018, Republicans lost the House and the Democrats gained 41 seats. What To Know When Newsweek asked Pelosi’s press team about the Politico report and the future of her career, Krager instead emphasized that the Democratic leader is focused on Proposition 50, which “authorizes temporary changes to congressional district maps in response to Texas’ partisan redistricting.” The proposition comes amid a broader national battle over congressional maps, after Texas GOP lawmakers, backed by Trump, passed a new map, expected to grant Republicans another five seats. In response, Democrats in California drew up their own proposed map aimed at giving their party five new seats, which Californians will vote on. While the field is still fluid, here are some potential Democratic contenders for Pelosi’s seat. State Senator Scott Weiner Weiner, 55, announced on Wednesday he is running for Pelosi’s seat in 2026. In a press release he said: “I’m running for Congress because San Franciscans deserve a leader who can stand up to Trump's extremist agenda. This moment demands backbone and hard work that delivers results and makes people’s lives better. That’s what I’ve brought to every fight in my decades of public service in San Francisco and Sacramento, and that’s what I’ll bring to Washington.” He currently serves as a State Senator after being elected to the post in 2016. He represents the California district that includes San Francisco, Broadmoor, Colma, and Daly City. He serves as Chair of the Senate Budget Committee and Chair of the Senate Legislative Ethics Committee, according to his Senate website. Prior to serving in the state Senate, he served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, deputy city attorney, and a private lawyer. He received a bachelor’s degree from Duke University and a law degree from Harvard Law School. He told local outlet KQED that his run “really isn’t about Nancy Pelosi,” adding that she “has moved mountains for the country and for San Francisco, and I think the world of her. She’s not said whether she’s running again and we’re now to the point where we’re just a few months out from the filing deadline. And so it was time to enter the race.” He has long pushed for housing reforms in the Golden State which has a severe affordable housing shortage, and earlier this month Newsom signed into law his bill to allow taller apartment buildings along and near transit routes. Saikat Chakrabarti Chakrabarti, 39, a software engineer and co-founder of the progressive organization Justice Democrats and president of New Consensus, announced his run against Pelosi in February. He has had a successful behind-the-scenes political campaign career, as well as in software engineering. He is a Harvard University graduate. He was instrumental to Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's 2018 upset primary victory in New York—defeating powerful former Representative Joe Crowley, who was then serving as the chair of the House Democratic Caucus. Chakrabarti went on to work as Ocasio-Cortez's chief of staff, helping to manage her rise on the political stage and in Congress. After leaving Ocasio-Cortez's staff in 2019, he focused his efforts on working with New Consensus, an organization dedicated to the Green New Deal. Chakrabarti was key to moving the policy idea forward as part of Ocasio-Cortez's team. Then in early February he announced his intention to challenge one of the most powerful Democrats in office. He previously told Newsweek in March: “I think what we're experiencing right now in the country and in the Democratic Party and in San Francisco is this huge moment of change. I think people are really pretty pissed off with their Democratic leadership.” Newsweek has reached out to Chakrabarti’s team for comment via email on Wednesday. San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan Chan, 47, has not announced a her run for office, but has been coming up under Pelosi’s wing, leading political pundits to speculate a possible run. Last weekend, she spoke alongside Pelosi at the recent “No Kings” protest in San Francisco. Robyn Burke, a spokesperson for Chan, told Politico on the matter, “She supports Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi for Congress." She represents District 1 on the Board of Supervisors which includes Inner Richmond, Central Richmond, Outer Richmond, Lone Mountain, Golden Gate Park, Lincoln Park, University of San Francisco, Sea Cliff, and Presidio Terrace. In that role, she serves as chair of the Government Audit and Oversight Committee and is a member of the San Francisco County Transit Authority and the San Francisco Local Agency Formation Commission. She was born in Hong Kong and moved to San Francisco when she was 13 years old. She graduated from the University of California Davis. Newsweek has reached out to Chan’s team for comment via email on Wednesday.
