House Democrats have elected Sean Patrick Maloney of New York’s 18th District to serve as the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Maloney defeated California Congressman Tony Cárdenas, saying he could replicate his success in the lower Hudson Valley, a historically Republican district. Maloney overcame Republican Chele Farley in last month’s election.
I’m honored and humbled to earn the trust of my colleagues to lead the @DCCC at this pivotal moment in history.
— Sean Patrick Maloney (@RepSeanMaloney) December 3, 2020
Now, it’s time for House Democrats to unite and go forward together. We need a unified front to win in 2022.
We will protect this majority... for the people.
Elected to Congress in 2012, Maloney ran for state Attorney General in 2018, but finished third in the Democratic primary.
Democrats will hold a slim majority in the first two years of Biden’s presidency after losing nine seats to Republicans in November. Two races including New York's 22nd District, between Democratic Congressman Anthony Brindisi and Republican Claudia Tenney, remain too close to call.
Also Thursday, Democrats tapped Connecticut's Rosa DeLauro of the 3rd district to replace retiring New York Rep. Nita Lowey (D-17) as chair of the Appropriations Committee.
Elsewhere, Mass. Rep. Richard Neal of the 1st House district will serve as chair of the Ways & Means Committee for another term starting in 2021. He released a statement:
Remaining the Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee is the honor of my life, and I am immensely grateful to my colleagues for entrusting me with this responsibility. This past Congress, Ways and Means Democrats wasted no time with our majority. We passed legislation to lower prescription drug prices, increase Americans’ retirement savings, redesign the IRS, reduce the number of children requiring placement in foster homes, and provide expanded tax credits to low-wage workers and middle-class families. Our members led the way in improving and passing the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and conducted robust oversight of the Trump Administration at every turn.
Of our many achievements, I am most proud of the Committee’s swift and innovative leadership through the COVID-19 health and economic crises. Our significant contributions to Congress’s pandemic relief packages saved both lives and livelihoods. We’re not out of the woods yet, though. The American people need us now more than ever, and I look forward to the Committee working closely with the Biden Administration not only to recover from this horrific virus and accompanying recession, but to build back even better.
