Rep. Hakeem Jeffries has officially moved into his new Capitol Hill office, complete with a ‘Democratic Leader’ nameplate.

House Democrats unanimously selected Jeffries to succeed Nancy Pelosi at the start of the new Congress, which gavels into session Tuesday. With Democrats out of power in the House after the 2022 midterms, Jeffries becomes minority leader.

“I feel a tremendous sense of responsibility in terms of wanting to make sure that I work as hard as I can, deliver results, stay focused, and make life better for the people that I'm privileged to represent,” he told NY1 Monday during an interview in his new office, which is just yards away from the House floor.

Jeffries is making history in the post, becoming the first Black person to lead a party on Capitol Hill – in a building slave labor helped construct.

“It’s part of the American journey,” Jeffries said. “Government of the people, by the people and for the people is not just rhetoric. It’s reality.”

GOP Succession

While House Democrats’ leadership succession occurred with effectively no drama, the same cannot be said of the Republican side.

The days leading up to the start of the new Congress have been consumed over questions of whether California Republican Kevin McCarthy can secure the votes he needs to become the next speaker.

McCarthy recently agreed to certain House rules changes as part of an effort to win over some conservative Republicans. One of those changes would lower the threshold to hold a vote of no confidence in the speaker.

Asked about those concessions from McCarthy, Jeffries said Americans should be concerned about what he called “extreme MAGA Republicans” taking control in the House.

“What is clear is that the House Republican leadership is catering to the extremes in order to get the votes necessary to be successful and emerge with the speakership in hand,” he said.

George Santos

Also consuming headlines ahead of the new Congress: New York Rep-elect. George Santos.

Santos, a Republican who won November’s contest to fill New York’s open 3rd congressional seat, has come under fire after a New York Times investigation raised questions about his resume and finances. 

Since the report, Santos has admitted to making up aspects of the biography he shared during his campaign, from his family heritage to his educational background and work history.

Jeffries calls Santos a “complete and total fraud” who does not “appear qualified to serve in the intuition of the House of Representatives.” However, he said, Republicans need to “own” the decision of whether to seat Santos.

Republican leaders have so far been silent on the congressman-elect. North Country Rep. Elise Stefanik’s team did not respond to a request for comment.

Last week, NY1 was the first to report that Bronx Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres had written a letter to the House Ethics Committee, demanding they investigate Santos.

Asked whether he agreed with such a request, Jeffries said that “if George Santos is seated, seems to me to be appropriate - if the Ethics Committee receives a complaint - that it should be taken seriously.”