Jeffries pledges affordability focus as Democrats prepare to lead House

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said Democrats expect to win at least 255 seats as they prepare to take control of the House, and pledged to make affordability a priority. The final seat count remained incomplete, and the new Congress is due to convene in January. Jeffries, who is positioned to become the first Black speaker of the House, said at a Wednesday news conference that voters had chosen a change in direction. He described lowering costs for households as a central task for the incoming majority. Democrats campaigned on the cost of groceries, gasoline, housing and health care. He has also said Democrats would seek to hold the Trump administration accountable for any wrongdoing, while pursuing legislation. Jeffries said they would follow the facts and the law. He pointed to a bipartisan housing-affordability bill that passed in July as an example of a measure they could pursue. The bill became law without President Donald Trump’s signature after he dismissed it as unimportant. The party’s majority does not guarantee that its proposals will become law. Trump has threatened to veto legislation he opposes, and Jeffries acknowledged that Democrats would need to...