Democrats’ dilemma post-Nancy Pelosi

Much debate has taken place over whether it is time for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to be replaced by a younger member of Congress. Some think the nation’s most powerful Democrat does not, at 78, connect with millennials — the largest generation in the U.S. workforce — in the same way that many older Americans have embraced President Donald Trump and other Republicans.

But a piece in The New York Times reports that age isn’t the only change some Democratic members of Congress would like to see in party leadership, especially if Democrats regain control of the House. The Times reported: “Most perilous for Ms. Pelosi right now may be an impatient mood in the Congressional Black Caucus, where senior legislators have begun arguing that it is past time to elect an African-American speaker.”

Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, the third-ranking House Democrat, has expressed some interest in running if Pelosi falls short, telling the Times that his becoming speaker would “put to bed forever the notion that the Democratic caucus is taking black voters for granted.”

But Clyburn, who is also 78, could face a challenge gaining support among Democratic members who are also looking for a generational change.

Since Hillary Clinton’s loss in 2016, much conversation has taken place about black Americans’ loyalty to the Democratic Party. Since the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the party has received the overwhelming majority of black votes. But some have questioned how committed the party is to its most loyal constituency.

While Clinton went on to win nearly 90 percent of black votes, questions about her commitment to the black community were a consistent thorn in her side during her campaign. Some black Americans stayed home on Election Day, despite pleas from President Barack Obama and other black Americans.

The clearest evidence of liberal Americans’ interest in seeing a new wave of leadership can be found in Democratic voters backing the most racially diverse group of candidates that the party has offered in a midterm election. And much of that change is being pushed by an increasingly diverse electorate and the youthful energy of millenial voters. Democratic Party leaders are banking on those same levels of support from the primaries to be carried through the November elections.

But even if Democrats do exceedingly well in November, there is concern about future elections, leading some to argue that the best way for Democrats to remain in the majority in upcoming years is to have a more youthful presence at the most senior levels of leadership.

But if Clyburn is selected to lead the party, it suggests the party’s bigger focus is respecting its most loyal demographic group over trying to secure a demographic that has proven to be less consistent in its support. So far, Pelosi has stated she intends to run for the House leadership, and while there have been rumblings for change, significant support for her remains within the halls of Congress. It seems we’ll have neither a black speaker nor a younger speaker unless she’s forced to relinquish that claim.

Eugene Scott writes about identity politics for The Fix blog at The Washington Post.