Nancy Pelosi – The Only Woman in US History to serve as Speaker of the House




Nancy Pelosi is an American politician who is currently serving as the Speaker of the US House of Representatives. She is the only woman in American history to ever serve as the Speaker. Till the inauguration of VP elect Kamala Harris, she will remain as the highest ranking elected female official in the history of the country. As speaker, she is second in line to become POTUS after VP-elect Kamala Harris. Nancy Pelosi was reelected as a speaker for the fourth term. Which is also her last.

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In January 2021, Pelosi stated that the House will urgently move to impeach President Trump for the second time. She clarified that taking the step was necessary because there was a possibility that Trump would pardon the “terrorists” who attacked the US Capitol during the certification ceremony of the 2020 US Presidential elections by the house.

Nancy Pelosi was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 2013. She has featured in Forbes’ ‘100 most powerful women in the world’ list, many times. 

 

Nancy Pelosi – Salary and Net Worth

Nancy Pelosi’s salary as a speaker is $223,500 per annum

As of 2021, Nancy Pelosi has a net worth of around $121 million, which makes her one of the richest persons in the US Congress. Her net worth is a combination of stock investments, real estate assets, and other private holdings.

Nancy’s husband Paul owns and runs a financial consulting, venture capital, and real estate company called Financial Leasing Services, INC. He also owns some commercial properties and office buildings in San Francisco and around California. The couple has stock holdings in companies like Apple, Facebook, Comcast, and Disney, etc.

 

Early Life and Education

Nancy was born as Nancy Patricia D’Alesandro on March 26, 1940 into an Italian-American family in Baltimore, Maryland. Her father Thomas D’Alesandro Jr. was a Maryland democratic congressman who later became the Mayor of Baltimore. Her mother Annunciata M. “Nancy” D’Alesandro was also actively involved in politics and helped organize democratic women. Pelosi has 6 siblings, and is the youngest child and the only girl child. One of her brothers, Thomas D’Alesandro III, was Mayor of Baltimore from 1967 to 71. 

Nancy attended an all-girls, non-coed Catholic high school called ‘Institute of Notre Dame’ in Baltimore and graduated in 1958. She then enrolled at Washington D.C.’s Trinity College and graduated with a BA degree in political science in 1962.

From an early age, Nancy was active in politics and helped in the campaign events of her father. She even attended the inauguration of JFK in 1961. In the 1960s, she worked as an intern for Democratic Senator from Maryland Daniel Brewster, alongside the future majority leader of the House Steny Hoyer.

Nancy Pelosi – Political Career

Pelosi moved to San Francisco in 1969. There she befriended Phillip Burton, congressman from 5th district, and began actively working in Democratic Party politics. She was elected to the Democratic National Committee in 1976 as a member from California. In 1977, she became Northern California party chair and the head of the California Democratic Party in 1981. 

Burton passed away in 1983 and his place was taken by his wife Sala. She also fell sick in 1986 and died of cancer in Feb 1987. Before her demise, she had chosen Pelosi as the successor to the 5th district seat. Subsequently, Pelosi won the special election in June 1987 and became a US congresswoman for the first time. 

After the boundaries were redrawn, she ran and won from the 8th district from 1993 to 2013. From 2013, Nancy has been running and getting elected from the 12th congressional district in California. This district consists of the county of San Francisco and about 4/5ths of the city. It is one of the safest democratic districts in the US. Only 13% of the registered voters in the 12th district are Republicans. Democrats have not lost this district since 1949, and the Republicans have never seriously fought for it since the 60s. 

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Since 1987, Nancy has been elected to the house 16 more times without facing any significant opposition. Her average victory margins have been over 80 percent.  She didn’t participate in any Democratic candidates’ debates since 1987. In 2020, she faced her toughest primary challenge in Shahid Buttar. But she defeated him in the primaries with over 77 percent of the votes to his over 22 percent vote share.

Pelosi has been the dean of the congressional delegation from California for 17 terms, the last of which began in 2019. In 2003, she became the leader of the House Democrats (and has remained so till date), the first female to head a party in the House. She served as the House minority leader from 2003 to 07 and from 2011 to 19. She served as Speaker of the house from 2007 to 2011. She was re-elected as Speaker in 2019. 

During the 2007 State of the Union Address by then President Bush, Nancy was seated behind the podium. She thus became the first woman to do so in US history. President Bush acknowledged this fact by commencing his address with the words, “Tonight, I have the high privilege and distinct honor of my own as the first president to begin the State of the Union message with these words: Madam Speaker.” 

Nancy Pelosi – Husband and Children 

Nancy met Paul Francis Pelosi when she was in college. They got married on September 7, 1963 at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in Baltimore. The couple first moved to New York before settling down in San Francisco in 1969. At that time, Ronald Pelosi, Paul’s brother, was a member of the Board of Supervisors for the City and County of San Francisco.

Nancy Pelosi – Height 

Nancy is 5 feet 4 inches tall.

 

Nancy Pelosi – House 

  • The couple lives in San Francisco’s “Pacific Heights” neighborhood. They have 5 children (4 girls and a boy) and 9 grandchildren. Their daughter Alexandra is a journalist and filmmaker, while another daughter Christine is a writer. 
  • In addition to the house at Pacific Heights, she owns a townhouse in Loomis, CA; a mansion and vineyard at St. Helena, CA; and 2 commercial buildings in the city of San Francisco.  
  • Pelosi’s Frisco home was vandalized in January 2021. ‘Cancel Rent’ and other messages and graffiti were scribbled across the garage door. A pig’s severed head along with some fake blood were also left there.

Nancy Pelosi – Pictures

Nancy Pelosi – Young Pictures

Nancy Pelosi -Husband Paul Francis Pelosi

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