After two decades leading the Democrats in the US House of Representatives, Speaker Nancy Pelosi is laying down the gavel and resigning from party leadership.
The move comes after Republicans this week clinched control of the 435-seat chamber, and her departure has started a scramble for Democrats to find a new leader in the House.
One front runner has already emerged ― Hakeem Jeffries of New York.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn quickly endorsed him after Ms Pelosi's emotional resignation speech on Thursday.
If Mr Jeffries is chosen, he would become the first black American to lead a party in Congress. Ms Pelosi shattered a glass ceiling when she became the first and only woman to serve as House speaker.
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Nancy Pelosi after being re-elected as speaker of the US House of Representatives on January 3, 2021. Reuters -
Nancy Pelosi, here in her home city of San Francisco in 1987, was first elected to the house in the same year and steadily moved up the ranks, securing leadership positions before winning her first term as speaker in 2007. AP -
Ms Pelosi in a meeting with fellow Democrat Steny Hoyer in 2006. AP -
Ms Pelosi and Democratic Senator Richard Durbin in 2007. AP -
The 82-year-old has been speaker under four US presidents, including George W Bush in 2007. AP -
Ms Pelosi surrounded by children and grandchildren in 2007. AP -
Ms Pelosi and her husband Paul in 1987. AP -
The Dalai Lama and Ms Pelosi in 2009. AP -
Ms Pelosi with Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg during her annual Women's History Month reception in 2015. AP -
US President Joe Biden with Ms Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in the US Capitol on January 6, 2022. AP -
On January 28, 2016, she presented Barack Obama with a copy of the Iran nuclear agreement legislation. AP -
At a swearing-in ceremony for congresswoman Rashida Tlaib. AFP -
Ms Pelosi takes the gavel from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy in 2019. AP -
Ms Pelosi, 82, and two other top leaders have been under pressure the past few years from younger Democrats to yield power after two decades at the helm. EPA -
Ms Pelosi looking less than impressed as President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address in 2019. EPA -
Ms Pelosi rips up Mr Trump's speech. AP -
Ms Pelosi announcing the passage of Article II of impeachment against Mr Trump in December 2019. AP -
Trump-supporter Richard Barnett in Ms Pelosi's office during the January 6, 2021 occupation of the Capitol. AFP -
Chuck Schumer chatting to Nancy Pelosi in 2021. Getty Images / AFP
Who is Hakeem Jeffries?
The 52-year-old congressman has served in the fifth-highest rank of Democratic leadership since 2019, representing a New York congressional district that encompasses large parts of Brooklyn and a section of Queens.
Mr Jeffries was born and raised in Brooklyn, becoming a lawyer before going on to represent the eighth congressional district in 2013.
The representative has not shied away from his Brooklyn roots during his time in office. He once paid tribute on the House floor to renowned Brooklyn hip-hop artist, the late Notorious BIG, or "Biggie", who was born in Mr Jeffries' district.
He marked the 20th anniversary of Biggie's death in 2017 on the House floor, commemorating an artist he said represented "the classic embodiment of the American Dream".
He has served on the House Judiciary Committee throughout his time in Congress.
In January 2020, Ms Pelosi selected Mr Jeffries as one of seven House impeachment managers in the Senate trial of former president Donald Trump, where he helped to lead the case against Mr Trump's alleged attempt to leverage aid to Ukraine to incite in investigation against Joe Biden.
Throughout his career, he has prioritised affordable housing, criminal and social justice reforms, and the economy.
In the first half of President Joe Biden's term, Mr Jeffries was a leading Democrat as the party oversaw legislative victories, including the American Rescue Plan, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the Chips and Science Act and the landmark Inflation Reduction Act.
Mr Jeffries also recently voted in favour of Washington's withdrawal from Syria in its current capacity.
He issued an "aye" vote on the failed Bowman Amendment, which aimed to insert in the National Defence Authorisation Act a prohibition of US involvement in Syria without congressional approval.
The congressman was among the key leaders to help pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, a police reform bill that followed 2020's nationwide protests after a policeman murdered Floyd.
Arab artists respond to murder of George Floyd - in pictures
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Aziz Asmar, right, and Anis Hamdoun, sitting in front of their mural of George Floyd in Idlib, Syria. 'When we draw on the walls of destroyed buildings, we are telling the world that underneath these buildings there are people who have died or who have left their homes... there was injustice here, just like there's injustice in America'. Aziz Asmar -
An illustration by Lebanese artist Nouri Flayhan: 'I created this illustration to stand in solidarity with black people, to say we are all watching across the world.' Nouri Flayhan -
An illustration by Lebanese artist Nouri Flayhan reads: "Let's not pretend that racism doesn't exist in the Arab region." ... 'We need to acknowledge the racism issues we have in the Arab region, have uncomfortable conversations about them.' Nouri Flayhan -
Artwork by Palestinian artist Lina Abojaradeh: 'Standing up for one type of injustice is also standing up for every type of injustice,' she says. Lina Aboujaradeh -
Palestinian artist Lina Abojaradeh depicts George Floyd in new artwork that compares racism to a virus. Lina Abojaradeh -
Aziz Asmar painting a mural of George Floyd on a destroyed building wall in Idlib, Syria, with the words 'I can't breathe' and 'No to racism'. Aziz Asmar -
A mural of George Floyd in Idlib, Syria, by Syrian artists Aziz Asmar and Anis Hamdoun. Aziz Asmar
