Rep. Frank Pallone has prevailed in a tightly contested race for the top Democratic slot on the influential Energy and Commerce Committee, which has principal authority over healthcare legislation. The ranking member will play a crucial role in any efforts to amend or replace the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in the next Congress.
Pallone won the coveted post over Rep. Anna Eshoo of California by a 100-90 vote margin in a closed-door vote at the Capitol on Wednesday morning.
The two challengers had no substantive ideological differences. Rather, the race pitted Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, backing Eshoo, against Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, who was in Pallone's camp. After the vote, both challengers denied that the outcome should be seen as a referendum on leadership of the caucus.
The contest was also a test of seniority within the Democratic caucus. Pallone, from New Jersey, is serving his 13th term and has the longest tenure on the Energy and Commerce Committee, while Eshoo is the third-ranking member in terms of seniority and is in her 11th term.
Pallone will replace retiring Rep. Henry Waxman of California as the top Democrat on the committee. The contest to take his spot transpired over an unusually long period, with both challengers announcing their intentions to run last February.
During the recent campaign season, Eshoo and Pallone were both actively contributing money to fellow candidates and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Eshoo's campaign contributed $320,000 to the DCCC through the third quarter of this year, while Pallone's campaign chipped in $203,000 to help get Democrats elected, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
“There is a commitment here that we will be a unified team at Energy and Commerce,” Eshoo said after emerging from the closed-door meeting. “It is the committee that will bring the most opportunity to Americans. We are joined at the hip in this cause.”
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