Carolyn Maloney wins Oversight gavel
The New York Democrat won the race to succeed the late Elijah Cummings as the chair of the House Oversight and Reform Committee.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) is the new chair of the House Oversight and Reform Committee. (Photo credit: Lev Radin / Shutterstock.com)
Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.) won the race to succeed the late Elijah Cummings as the chair of the House Oversight and Reform Committee. The House Democratic Caucus voted Nov. 20 to elect Maloney, the most senior Democrat on the committee.
Maloney was named acting chair of the committee after the death of Cummings in October. She defeated Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), the chairman of the Government Operations subcommittee of the Oversight committee and an active member on government workforce and technology issues, to win the gavel on a permanent basis. The Caucus vote was 133-86. Maloney is the first woman to serve as chair of the pivotal committee.
Maloney, whose district includes parts of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, was first elected to the House in 1992. While she might not be known to committee watchers who are interested in technology legislation and oversight, Maloney has been a key player in government operations and workforce issues. She's co-chair of the House Census Caucus, and she introduced the Federal Employee Leave Act to extend parental leave to all federal employees. Maloney has also been a watchdog on financial technology issues as ranking member of the subcommittee on Capital Markets, Securities, and Investment of the House Financial Services Committee.
In addition to its responsibilities in overseeing governmentwide policy, government technology and the federal workforce, Oversight is one of four committees -- along with Intelligence, Judiciary and Foreign Affairs -- tasked with leading the House's impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.