“We need to be prepared for what’s going to happen when she can’t get to 218,” said the Ohio congressman Tim Ryan, a Democrat who challenged her for the speakership in 2016, referencing the necessary amount of votes Pelosi must secure if all Republicans vote against her…

Democrats have hailed Pelosi as “an architect of the recent midterm success,” pointing to her fundraising prowess – she raised a stunning $121.7m during the 2018 cycle – and her decision to deliver a disciplined message on healthcare. In a twist, eight years after Republicans won the House majority on a promise to repeal the Affordable Care Act, House Democratic candidates hammered their opponents for trying to repeal the law’s most popular protections.

“You don’t fire the coach after you win the Super Bowl,” Nadeam Elshami, Pelosi’s former chief of staff said during a recent Politico Live event.