Nancy Pelosi plans to stay in Congress; speakership remains in question

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declined to say Sunday if she will run again for the powerful leadership position but said, “I don’t have any plans to step away from Congress.”

Pelosi (D-San Francisco), who has served as speaker since 2019, following a previous term from 2007 to 2011, said she is “not making any comments until this election is finished” regarding the speakership.

The comments were made in an interview with George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “This Week” and come after her husband, Paul Pelosi, suffered a fractured skull and other injuries when an attacker broke into their San Francisco home with a hammer.

“He’s one good day after another, he’s improving. It will take a little while. But we’ve been so comforted by the outpouring of so many prayers and good wishes and even people saying, ‘I wasn’t going to vote, but now I’m going to vote because this has gone too far,’” Pelosi said.

Pelosi heralded unexpected Democratic wins across the country and credited “people over politics” messaging despite concerns that national issues like inflation would benefit Republicans.

“They never accepted the punditry that they couldn’t win, they had courage, they had purpose, and they understood their district,” she said. “I hope that’s a lesson, because really it depresses the vote sometimes when people say ‘it’s all over’ 18 months before the election. We never accepted that.”

Democrats maintain control of the Senate, while control of the House of Representatives is too close to call as mail-in ballots continue to be counted.

Pelosi, who urged President Biden to run for reelection, said that Democrats are “very proud of the outcome” regardless.

“Whatever the outcome, we’re on the path to taking our country to a better place than with being dragged down by the other side,” Pelosi said.