Nancy Pelosi admitted to reporters on Friday that she is seeking reelection mainly because she needs to raise money.
Pelosi, 83, told Politico that her veteran status in Congress is a major asset for raising funds.
“My focus is the House and presidency; you’re in a stronger position as a candidate,” Pelosi told Politico in the interview.
“You may not know this, but if you’re not a candidate, you really can’t raise money for yourself, Pelosi said as she argued her case for reelection.
“And raising money for myself enables me to spend that on other people.”
“For the House Democrats, though, I needed to be able to still raise significant money for them as a candidate,” she added.
Pelosi declared her candidacy for the state’s 11th Congressional District representing San Francisco on X, formerly Twitter, earlier this week.
This would make Pelosi’s 20th term in the House of Representatives.
On Friday, Pelosi said she was invigorated by the 2024 election cycle and the prospect of taking back the House.
“I feel so excited about the prospect of engaging people in this, I don’t want to use the word ‘fight,’ but this decision for our country,” she said.
“I feel I have a leverage, an influence, it’s not power — you know, I had power as speaker — it’s influence and that I shouldn’t underutilize it.”
Pelosi said her husband fully supports her decision to run again for office.
“I wouldn’t be doing it if he were objecting,” she said.
“He’s apolitical, but he knows what is at stake.”
Pelosi stepped down as leader of the House Democratic Caucus last year, passing the torch to current House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.
The former House Speaker’s announcement puts to rest any suggestion of retirement. It comes as many have called for term limits for aging elected officials, including octogenarian Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., 90-year-old Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and President Biden, who is 80.
READ: Pelosi Claims Soaring Crime in San Francisco Is ‘Confined to a Certain Part of Town’
