Katherine Clark announces bid to be No. 2 House Democrat - The Boston Globe

WASHINGTON—Representative Katherine Clark of Revere connected Friday officially announced her candidacy to beryllium the No. 2 House Democrat, seeking to determination up the enactment ranks aft House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s determination to measurement down on with her 2 apical deputies.

Clark, 59, presently holds the No. 4 presumption arsenic adjunct speaker, and hopes to proceed her accelerated emergence successful the House Democratic ranks since being elected successful 2013 to correspond the territory that includes Boston’s bluish and occidental suburbs.

“Effective enactment is not astir idiosyncratic ambition, but our corporate good. It is astir genuinely listening and knowing what each subordinate needs to beryllium successful,” she said successful a missive to her House Democratic colleagues Friday morning. “I volition usage my dependable astatine the enactment array to bring radical and solutions together.”

No workfellow has yet emerged to situation her bid.

Clark is portion of a semi-formal squad moving unneurotic for the apical 3 House Democratic positions to regenerate Pelosi and her existent deputies, lawmakers each successful their eighties who announced they were stepping down Thursday to marque country for a caller procreation of leaders as the enactment moves into the number adjacent year.

New York Representative Hakeem Jeffries, 52, is expected to question the apical position, which volition beryllium number person arsenic the speakership goes the Republicans. Clark is moving to beryllium the House number whip. And California Representative Pete Aguilar, 43, is expected to question the No. 3 position. There has been nary announced absorption to the trio, who are expected to beryllium installed erstwhile House Democrats clasp their enactment elections astatine the extremity of the month.

While the 3 person not been formally moving arsenic a slate, they person worked unneurotic arsenic the lawmakers straight down the octogenarians astatine the apical of the House Democratic enactment and person steadily drawn the enactment of their colleagues to ascend successful tandem.

As lawmakers anticipated the extremity of Pelosi’s two-decade reign, successful portion due to the fact that of a vague pledge 4 years agone to measurement down this year, Clark and her de-facto teammates had been softly maneuvering to beryllium successful presumption to determination up erstwhile the accidental came.

Clark’s House Democratic colleagues recognition her arsenic a skilled behind-the-scenes politician, 1 who knows the worth of gathering relationships. Many telephone her a friend, describing Clark arsenic lukewarm and engaged adjacent arsenic they enactment her governmental toughness.

She was archetypal elected to Democratic enactment successful 2018 successful a contested contention against Aguilar for the party’s vice seat position. In that relation and arsenic adjunct speaker, to which she roseate successful 2020, Clark has been intimately progressive successful moving with House Democrats, peculiarly newer members, successful enactment that has earned her a batch of goodwill. Though she is wide that she is simply a progressive, mean lawmakers accidental she has been deft astatine balancing her ain views with the request to see members of each governmental views successful the party, particularly successful the constrictive bulk that Democrats person faced the past 2 years.

Clark has besides been a prolific campaigner and fundraiser, traits that are seen arsenic a request of enactment leadership. According to her campaign, Clark traveled to astatine slightest 17 states to stump for different lawmakers this predetermination cycle, and raised much than $12 cardinal for Democrats.

Representative Richard Neal, of Springfield, who has served successful Congress for decades and been a adjacent Pelosi ally, said that Clark had the endowment to beryllium a almighty person herself.

“She’s going to beryllium smashingly successful,” helium predicted Thursday.

Clark connected Friday stressed the request for Democrats to beryllium agreed to antagonistic House Republicans, who volition person a razor-thin bulk aft midterm elections successful which they underperformed expectations for a reddish wave.

“Americans person rejected Republican extremism and affirmed our committedness to moving people. By lasting with women, for democracy, and for everyone’s economical security, we person defied expectations and secured a historically adjacent borderline successful the House,” she wrote to her colleagues.

“Now, we indispensable beryllium tough, agile, and agreed to halt the Republican House Majority’s unsafe docket and instrumentality backmost the House,” she continued. “I americium acceptable to usher this captious enactment arsenic our adjacent Democratic Whip, and I inquire for your support.”

Jim Puzzanghera tin beryllium reached astatine jim.puzzanghera@globe.com. Follow him connected Twitter: @JimPuzzanghera. Tal Kopan tin beryllium reached astatine tal.kopan@globe.com. Follow her connected Twitter @talkopan.