RSS
Home | Political post | Minority leader of the United States House of Representatives
|
|
|
The House Minority Leader is one of the party leaders of the United States House of Representatives. This title is currently held by Democratic Representative Nancy Pelosi of California. The Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives serves as floor leader of the opposition party, and is the minority counterpart to the Majority Leader. The Minority Leader is also the actual head of his or her party in the House, while the Majority Leader is subordinate to the Speaker of the House in the leadership hierarchy of their party. As the party's nominee for Speaker at the start of a new Congress, the minority leader traditionally hands the gavel to the Speaker-elect, who is nearly always elected on a straight party-line vote. The speakership election spotlights the main problem that confronts the minority leader: the subordinate status of his or her party in an institution noted for majority rule. The House, said a Democratic leader at a time when his party was in the majority, "operates under the principle that a determined majority should be allowed to work its will while protecting the rights of the minority to be heard." Minority party lawmakers are certain to be heard, but whether they will be heeded is sometimes another matter. Thus, the utmost goal of any minority leader is to recapture majority control of the House. The U.S. House of Representatives does not officially use the term "Minority Leader", although the media frequently does. The House instead uses the terms "Republican Leader" or "Democratic Leader" depending on which party holds a minority of seats. |
