A look at the legacy and influence Nancy Pelosi will leave behind when she retires

Rep. Nancy Pelosi will retire following the 2026 midterm elections, ending her almost 40-year career in Congress, but leaving a lasting influence on U.S. politics.

LEILA FADEL, HOST: No matter which party controls the House after the November election, one thing is for sure. The next Congress will not include San Francisco Democrat and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is retiring after nearly 40 years in the House of Representatives. And she was the first female speaker there. As Pelosi serves out her final months in office, KQED Public Media in San Francisco is releasing a five-part podcast called The Speaker about Pelosi's influence on the national political landscape. KQED's Scott Shafer is hosting the podcast, and he joins us now. Good morning, Scott. SCOTT SHAFER, BYLINE: Morning. FADEL: OK. So the first episode of your podcast takes place in 1987, the year Pelosi was first elected. Tell us about how she got her start in Congress. SHAFER: Yeah. That's right. Pelosi was one of 14 candidates running for that seat after Congresswoman Sala Burton died of cancer. And up to that point, Pelosi had been a Democratic Party insider - first as a local volunteer, later becoming a prolific fundraiser in California and nationwide and then ultimately chair of the state Democratic Party. Pelosi would go on to become a powerhouse in Washington. But in that first campaign, she was dismissed as a lightweight, a rich socialite who was out of touch with ordinary people. One of her opponents called her a dilettante. And KQED actually hosted a televised debate that year. And here's one candidate, Supervisor Carol Ruth Silver, talking while Pelosi tries to respond. And the moderators also jump in. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR CONTENT) CAROL RUTH SILVER: How can she relate to people like me, a single parent, working mother? UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #1: Why can't... SILVER: Will somebody... UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #1: ...She relate? (CROSSTALK) SILVER: Because the problems are different. She's never met a payroll. She's never had to worry about childcare. NANCY PELOSI: Well, I have met... SILVER: She's never had a kid in a public school. PELOSI: I have my... SILVER: She's never worried about the things that worry most of the people in San Francisco. PELOSI: And you've never - and... UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #2: Let's let Nancy answer. PELOSI: OK. SHAFER: So you can hear in that clip from that '87 debate that even though her campaign slogan was, a voice that will be heard, she had a really hard time getting a word in edgewise. FADEL: Sounds like she was portrayed by her opponents as what might be called today a corporate Democrat. Can you explain more about that? SHAFER: Yeah. Exactly. In fact, in that '87 campaign, she raised and spent more money than all of the other 13 candidates combined, including a $200,000 donation to herself. Now, we should point out that 40 years later, some on the left are still angry because they think the Democratic Party relies too much on wealthy donors and corporate PACs... FADEL: Yeah. SHAFER: ...Instead of prioritizing the interests of what they see as working-class people. The reality is that while Pelosi is solidly liberal, she's also very pragmatic. She was just like, what can we get done? You know, and money can sometimes help, and also tenacity. Here's how she described her plan to overcome opposition to passing the Affordable Care Act. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PELOSI: If there's a fence in our way, if there's a barrier, we'll break open the gate, push through the gate. If that doesn't work, we'll climb the fence. If that doesn't work, we'll pole vault in. If that doesn't work, we'll parachute in. But we're not letting anything stand in our way. SHAFER: And she was relentless, in fact, in getting the ACA - or Obamacare - passed. FADEL: Tell us about the campaign to replace her. How is Pelosi exerting her influence in that race? SHAFER: Yeah. So under California's election law, the top 2 finishers in the primary advance to the runoff. So - no surprise - here in San Francisco, they're both Democrats. The more moderate candidate, at least by San Francisco standards, is openly gay state Senator Scott Wiener. He's been a big proponent of building more housing and regulating AI. Pelosi has endorsed his opponent, Connie Chan, a member of the board of supervisors. She's a favorite of organized labor. But, you know, no matter who wins, Pelosi's retirement is going to leave San Francisco with a much smaller voice in Congress, while the Democratic Party is losing its most prolific fundraiser. FADEL: That's politics correspondent Scott Shafer, host of the new podcast The Speaker from KQED and NPR. Scott, thank you. SHAFER: Thank you so much. Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

LEILA FADEL, HOST: No matter which party controls the House after the November election, one thing is for sure. The next Congress will not include San Francisco Democrat and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is retiring after nearly 40 years in the House of Representatives. And she was the first female speaker there. As Pelosi serves out her final months in office, KQED Public Media in San Francisco is releasing a five-part podcast called The Speaker about Pelosi's influence on the national political landscape. KQED's Scott Shafer is hosting the podcast, and he joins us now. Good morning, Scott. SCOTT SHAFER, BYLINE: Morning. FADEL: OK. So the first episode of your podcast takes place in 1987, the year Pelosi was first elected. Tell us about how she got her start in Congress. SHAFER: Yeah. That's right. Pelosi was one of 14 candidates running for that seat after Congresswoman Sala Burton died of cancer. And up to that point, Pelosi had been a Democratic Party insider - first as a local volunteer, later becoming a prolific fundraiser in California and nationwide and then ultimately chair of the state Democratic Party. Pelosi would go on to become a powerhouse in Washington. But in that first campaign, she was dismissed as a lightweight, a rich socialite who was out of touch with ordinary people. One of her opponents called her a dilettante. And KQED actually hosted a televised debate that year. And here's one candidate, Supervisor Carol Ruth Silver, talking while Pelosi tries to respond. And the moderators also jump in. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR CONTENT) CAROL RUTH SILVER: How can she relate to people like me, a single parent, working mother? UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #1: Why can't... SILVER: Will somebody... UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #1: ...She relate? (CROSSTALK) SILVER: Because the problems are different. She's never met a payroll. She's never had to worry about childcare. NANCY PELOSI: Well, I have met... SILVER: She's never had a kid in a public school. PELOSI: I have my... SILVER: She's never worried about the things that worry most of the people in San Francisco. PELOSI: And you've never - and... UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #2: Let's let Nancy answer. PELOSI: OK. SHAFER: So you can hear in that clip from that '87 debate that even though her campaign slogan was, a voice that will be heard, she had a really hard time getting a word in edgewise. FADEL: Sounds like she was portrayed by her opponents as what might be called today a corporate Democrat. Can you explain more about that? SHAFER: Yeah. Exactly. In fact, in that '87 campaign, she raised and spent more money than all of the other 13 candidates combined, including a $200,000 donation to herself. Now, we should point out that 40 years later, some on the left are still angry because they think the Democratic Party relies too much on wealthy donors and corporate PACs... FADEL: Yeah. SHAFER: ...Instead of prioritizing the interests of what they see as working-class people. The reality is that while Pelosi is solidly liberal, she's also very pragmatic. She was just like, what can we get done? You know, and money can sometimes help, and also tenacity. Here's how she described her plan to overcome opposition to passing the Affordable Care Act. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PELOSI: If there's a fence in our way, if there's a barrier, we'll break open the gate, push through the gate. If that doesn't work, we'll climb the fence. If that doesn't work, we'll pole vault in. If that doesn't work, we'll parachute in. But we're not letting anything stand in our way. SHAFER: And she was relentless, in fact, in getting the ACA - or Obamacare - passed. FADEL: Tell us about the campaign to replace her. How is Pelosi exerting her influence in that race? SHAFER: Yeah. So under California's election law, the top 2 finishers in the primary advance to the runoff. So - no surprise - here in San Francisco, they're both Democrats. The more moderate candidate, at least by San Francisco standards, is openly gay state Senator Scott Wiener. He's been a big proponent of building more housing and regulating AI. Pelosi has endorsed his opponent, Connie Chan, a member of the board of supervisors. She's a favorite of organized labor. But, you know, no matter who wins, Pelosi's retirement is going to leave San Francisco with a much smaller voice in Congress, while the Democratic Party is losing its most prolific fundraiser. FADEL: That's politics correspondent Scott Shafer, host of the new podcast The Speaker from KQED and NPR. Scott, thank you. SHAFER: Thank you so much. Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

No matter which party controls the House after the November election, one thing is for sure. The next Congress will not include San Francisco Democrat and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is retiring after nearly 40 years in the House of Representatives. And she was the first female speaker there. As Pelosi serves out her final months in office, KQED Public Media in San Francisco is releasing a five-part podcast called The Speaker about Pelosi's influence on the national political landscape. KQED's Scott Shafer is hosting the podcast, and he joins us now. Good morning, Scott. SCOTT SHAFER, BYLINE: Morning. FADEL: OK. So the first episode of your podcast takes place in 1987, the year Pelosi was first elected. Tell us about how she got her start in Congress. SHAFER: Yeah. That's right. Pelosi was one of 14 candidates running for that seat after Congresswoman Sala Burton died of cancer. And up to that point, Pelosi had been a Democratic Party insider - first as a local volunteer, later becoming a prolific fundraiser in California and nationwide and then ultimately chair of the state Democratic Party. Pelosi would go on to become a powerhouse in Washington. But in that first campaign, she was dismissed as a lightweight, a rich socialite who was out of touch with ordinary people. One of her opponents called her a dilettante. And KQED actually hosted a televised debate that year. And here's one candidate, Supervisor Carol Ruth Silver, talking while Pelosi tries to respond. And the moderators also jump in. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR CONTENT) CAROL RUTH SILVER: How can she relate to people like me, a single parent, working mother? UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #1: Why can't... SILVER: Will somebody... UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #1: ...She relate? (CROSSTALK) SILVER: Because the problems are different. She's never met a payroll. She's never had to worry about childcare. NANCY PELOSI: Well, I have met... SILVER: She's never had a kid in a public school. PELOSI: I have my... SILVER: She's never worried about the things that worry most of the people in San Francisco. PELOSI: And you've never - and... UNIDENTIFIED MODERATOR #2: Let's let Nancy answer. PELOSI: OK. SHAFER: So you can hear in that clip from that '87 debate that even though her campaign slogan was, a voice that will be heard, she had a really hard time getting a word in edgewise. FADEL: Sounds like she was portrayed by her opponents as what might be called today a corporate Democrat. Can you explain more about that? SHAFER: Yeah. Exactly. In fact, in that '87 campaign, she raised and spent more money than all of the other 13 candidates combined, including a $200,000 donation to herself. Now, we should point out that 40 years later, some on the left are still angry because they think the Democratic Party relies too much on wealthy donors and corporate PACs... FADEL: Yeah. SHAFER: ...Instead of prioritizing the interests of what they see as working-class people. The reality is that while Pelosi is solidly liberal, she's also very pragmatic. She was just like, what can we get done? You know, and money can sometimes help, and also tenacity. Here's how she described her plan to overcome opposition to passing the Affordable Care Act. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PELOSI: If there's a fence in our way, if there's a barrier, we'll break open the gate, push through the gate. If that doesn't work, we'll climb the fence. If that doesn't work, we'll pole vault in. If that doesn't work, we'll parachute in. But we're not letting anything stand in our way. SHAFER: And she was relentless, in fact, in getting the ACA - or Obamacare - passed. FADEL: Tell us about the campaign to replace her. How is Pelosi exerting her influence in that race? SHAFER: Yeah. So under California's election law, the top 2 finishers in the primary advance to the runoff. So - no surprise - here in San Francisco, they're both Democrats. The more moderate candidate, at least by San Francisco standards, is openly gay state Senator Scott Wiener. He's been a big proponent of building more housing and regulating AI. Pelosi has endorsed his opponent, Connie Chan, a member of the board of supervisors. She's a favorite of organized labor. But, you know, no matter who wins, Pelosi's retirement is going to leave San Francisco with a much smaller voice in Congress, while the Democratic Party is losing its most prolific fundraiser. FADEL: That's politics correspondent Scott Shafer, host of the new podcast The Speaker from KQED and NPR. Scott, thank you. SHAFER: Thank you so much. Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may b