Nov. 13
Hakeem Jeffries Voted for a Resolution to Honor Charlie Kirk and 7 Other Disqualifying Votes He’s Made
On the Kirk resolution, 58 House Democrats voted no, and at least 70 opposed Jeffries on each of the other seven votes. The caucus picks its Speaker nominee on Nov. 18, 2026.
Hakeem Jeffries, the House Democratic leader, voted on Sept. 19, 2025, for a resolution “honoring the life and legacy” of Charlie Kirk. The Clerk of the House, the office that publishes how every member votes, recorded 58 Democrats voting no and 38 voting present.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland announced on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, that he is running against Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York for Senate majority leader. The Associated Press reported that Senate Democrats have not held a contested election for leader in decades. Schumer wrote on X the same night, “I have the votes to continue serving as Democratic Leader,” and the caucus will choose between them by secret ballot on Dec. 1, 2026.
Senate Democrats now have two candidates for leader, and House Democrats have one.
House Democrats choose their nominee for Speaker on Nov. 18, 2026, in a closed-door vote, and Jeffries has no opponent. Before that vote, I read the Clerk’s records of his votes since he became Democratic leader in January 2023.
Below, I list eight of them, the Kirk resolution first and the other seven from newest to oldest. Each of those seven made the list because at least 70 House Democrats voted the opposite way from Jeffries. He also voted with most House Democrats at other times: he was one of 113 Democrats who voted no on a June 9, 2025, resolution expressing gratitude to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and one of 205 who voted no on the defense bill that passed on July 22, 2026.
Feel how you want about the man, but these are his votes. If you can read this list and still support him for Speaker, then I guess I’d love to hear from you in the comments.
1. He voted to honor Charlie Kirk.
The House passed the resolution nine days after Kirk, the founder of the conservative group Turning Point USA, was assassinated. In it, the House declared that Kirk “personified the values of the First Amendment.” Jeffries voted yes alongside House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, and the three said in a joint statement that their vote “is not an endorsement of the views espoused by Charlie Kirk.”
2. He voted against cutting $3.3 billion in military aid to Israel.
On July 15, 2026, Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican, offered an amendment to remove $3.3 billion in military aid to Israel from the fiscal 2027 State Department spending bill. Jeffries voted no, and the Clerk recorded 103 Democrats voting for the cut, Clark among them.
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3. He voted to denounce socialism hours before Zohran Mamdani’s White House meeting.
On Nov. 21, 2025, the House passed a resolution titled “Denouncing the horrors of socialism” hours before Zohran Mamdani met President Donald Trump at the White House. Mamdani, a democratic socialist, was then New York City’s mayor-elect. Jeffries voted yes, while 98 Democrats voted no, more than the 86 who voted yes.
4. He voted for the crypto bill that exempts the president’s family.
On July 17, 2025, the House passed the GENIUS Act, which set federal rules for the cryptocurrencies known as stablecoins. Members of Congress and their relatives are barred from making money on stablecoins under the law, and that prohibition “does not extend to the president and his family,” the news network Al Jazeera reported.
The Trump family has a financial interest in World Liberty Financial, which issued its own stablecoin. Jeffries voted yes, and 110 Democrats voted against the bill.
5. He voted to table Trump’s impeachment over the Iran strikes.
On June 24, 2025, three days after Trump ordered the bombing of three Iranian nuclear sites without asking Congress, Rep. Al Green, a Texas Democrat, filed articles of impeachment. Jeffries voted yes on the motion to table them, which ended the effort before the House voted on the articles, while 79 Democrats voted against tabling.
6. He voted for the Antisemitism Awareness Act.
On May 1, 2024, the House passed a bill requiring the Education Department to use the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism when it enforces civil rights law. The American Civil Liberties Union opposed the bill as a threat to free speech on college campuses. Jeffries voted yes, and 70 Democrats voted against the bill.
Five months earlier, on Dec. 5, 2023, he was one of 92 Democrats who voted present when the House declared that “anti-Zionism is antisemitism.”
7. He voted against requiring a warrant to search Americans’ messages.
On April 12, 2024, the House voted on an amendment that would have required a warrant before federal agencies search Americans’ communications gathered under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Jeffries voted no. The amendment failed on a 212 to 212 tie, and the Clerk recorded 84 Democrats voting for the warrant.
On June 11, 2026, Jeffries was one of 199 Democrats who voted against extending the same program for three weeks.
8. He voted to denounce socialism in 2023, too.
On Feb. 2, 2023, one month after Jeffries became Democratic leader, the House passed an earlier resolution with the same title. Jeffries voted yes, and 86 Democrats voted against the resolution.
On four of these eight votes, more House Democrats opposed Jeffries’ position or declined to join it than voted with him: the Kirk resolution, the Israel aid amendment, the 2025 socialism resolution and the crypto bill.
The Speaker decides which bills and amendments reach the House floor. On Nov. 18, 2026, House Democrats decide whether to give Jeffries that power.
Below, in the Call to Action, I lay out what you can do before that vote.
CALL TO ACTION
Who you’re contacting and how: Post this list somewhere Democrats organize, such as an Indivisible chapter group, a county party page, a union local’s thread or a neighborhood group, and ask people there what they make of the votes. Then reach out to your U.S. representative, or the representative-elect who won your district on Nov. 3, 2026, if they are a Democrat. If they aren’t, reach out to your state Democratic Party. You can do that by email, phone, FaxZero or even a printed letter. You could even go to their office during business hours, bring donuts, and tell the staff you’re going to talk to them about an issue you care about if the representative isn’t there.
Find your representative by clicking on this sentence.
What you’re asking for: for them to vote against Hakeem Jeffries for Speaker when House Democrats meet on Nov. 18, 2026, and to say publicly who they are voting for. If you’re contacting your state Democratic Party, the ask is a public statement from the party before that vote.
Let them know who you are, what you want, and why you care. Offices count identical messages once, so write it in your own words.
My own script is short: who I am, why I care, what I want. “My name is ___ and I live in ___. I voted for Democrats on Nov. 3, 2026, because ___. I’m asking Representative ___ to oppose Hakeem Jeffries for Speaker.”
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