House Dem who defied Hakeem Jeffries scores upset win in pro-Trump district

🔮 Jeffries sent a letter to fellow House Democrats on Wednesday afternoon congratulating them on their victories and adding, "I write to humbly request your support in connection with my candidacy to serve as the next Speaker of the House of Representatives." Jeffries told reporters that he intended to run for the top job in the House during a press conference with his top deputies on Wednesday, House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., and House Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar, D-Calif. Clark and Aguilar also signaled they would run for the No. 2 and No. 3 positions in the House.

🔮 It's an important victory for House Democrats in their quest to claw back the majority in Congress, but one that could also create drama for party leaders on key votes over the next two years.

🔮 A far-left Democrat who founded a youth climate activism group is expected to head to Congress next year after likely defeating moderate House GOP Rep. Tom Barrett, R-Mich. Sunrise Movement co-founder Will Lawrence is the projected winner to represent Michigan's 7th Congressional District in the House of Representatives in what was considered one of the most closely watched races of the 2026 midterm cycle. Lawrence is a former member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) who was endorsed by prominent figures on the far left like Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. But he's sought to distance himself from that label in the final stretch of the campaign, presenting a more moderate view that in the end appears to have proved successful.

🔮 A Democratic lawmaker who publicly defied House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., twice is projected to beat the odds to win re-election in a district that President Donald Trump carried in 2024.

🔮 " Republicans in states that were particularly affected by redistricting had been warning their governors for months that it could be a bad idea, another person told Fox News Digital.

🔮 Prominent House Republicans are beginning to fight over who will be President Donald Trump's top defender amid a likely barrage of Democrat-led investigations.

🔮 The development comes shortly after it became public that House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, will mount a bid to be minority leader next year.

🔮 It comes as the House of Representatives is projected to fall into Democratic hands for the remainder of President Donald Trump's term.

🔮 Johnson, who enjoys a close relationship with President Donald Trump, is projected to win nearly 60% of the vote against four other declared candidates, according to the Associated Press, and therefore is guaranteed to return to Congress in January.

🔮 Democrats have seized the House majority and will control the lower chamber of Congress for the final two years of President Donald Trump's term, the Fox News Decision Desk projects.