Ocasio-Cortez loses bid to be top Democrat on House Oversight Committee

Arthur Jones II, Lauren Peller, John Parkinson and Tal Axelrod, ABC News

December 17, 2024

(WASHINGTON) -- House Democratic veteran Rep. Gerry Connolly fended off a challenge from progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Tuesday, putting the Virginia Democrat in line to become the House Oversight Committee’s top-ranked Democrat in the new Congress.

Connolly has served on the Oversight Committee since 2009 and has led Democrats on the subcommittee on government operations since 2013. He announced on Nov. 7 that he was diagnosed with esophagus cancer, opening the door for a challenge from Ocasio-Cortez.

Despite those health challenges, Connolly won by a vote of 131-84, according to multiple Democratic sources -- cementing his role in one of the most high-profile positions in Washington to combat the incoming Trump administration and a unified Republican majority in Congress.

Ocasio-Cortez has served on the Oversight Committee since her first term in 2019 when she took Capitol Hill by storm as a leader of the so-called Squad. Despite the defeat today, she is still poised to take on a prominent role on the panel in the 119th Congress.

Connolly said he is ready to take on the Trump administration.

“He [Trump] may feel more emboldened, but that may also make him more reckless," Connolly said. "There is a law on this land and we're going to make sure it's enforced.”

“Our strategy is going to be to tell the truth and if that hurts then we know we’ve made our mark,” he said.

Connolly said he was able to defeat AOC because, “I think my colleagues were measuring their votes by who's got experience, who's seasoned, who can be trusted, who's capable on it, who's got a record of productivity. And I think that prevailed.”

Connolly won an initial recommendation Monday evening from the House Democratic Steering Committee to lead Democrats on the panel in the next Congress over AOC by a vote count of 34-27.

In defiance of that recommendation, Ocasio-Cortez asked the full caucus to vote on the contest.

The results come as Democrats undergo a post-election reckoning following Vice President Kamala Harris' loss to President-elect Donald Trump -- a period of soul-searching that has put a noticeable dent in House Democrats' traditional deference to seniority for committee assignments.

Democrats so far have already opted for younger, more junior Democrats to jump the line to serve as the top party member of the Judiciary, Agriculture and Natural Resources committees, moves that amounted to significant shakeups on Capitol Hill.

The maneuvering comes as Democrats prepare for battle with the Trump administration next year, with members hopeful that younger, more energetic voices would be able to better carry the party message into what are expected to be high-profile policy fights, even if Democrats are stuck in the minority.

However, when it came to the Oversight Committee, Democrats appeared to still prioritize Connolly's standing despite his health issues over Ocasio-Cortez, a progressive and effective communicator but someone who has emerged as a prominent boogeyman for national Republicans.

Overall, Democrats have selected five women to be ranking members on committees in the next Congress, along with several people of color, while Republicans have tapped zero women.