At #3 in the hierarchy of the House of Representatives, Rep. Pete Aguilar is the highest ranking Latino (in this case Mexican) member of the Democratic Party. He was elected to his current leadership role in 2022 after the legendary trio of Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, and Jim Clyburn stepped down.
Rep. Pete Aguilar, a California Democrat, is taking on the highest-level job ever held by a Latino in the House, the party's No. 3 position, with a promise that his party will take back the majority in 2024.
Aguilar was elected by his colleagues Wednesday to serve in the next Congress as chair of the House Democratic Caucus, a role bumped up to No. 3 position in House leadership, from No. 4. Aguilar, 43, has been serving as caucus vice chair.
His colleagues shouted, "We want Petey Pie," a nickname from his grandmother, during elections, according to a source who was in the room during the closed-doors leadership elections.
Currently, Aguilar is the chair of the House Democratic Caucus. What does this position entail?
The House Democratic Caucus is a congressional caucus composed of all Democratic representatives in the House of Representatives, voting and not voting, and is responsible for nominating and electing the Democratic Party leadership in the chamber. In its roles as a party conference, the caucus writes and enforces rules of conduct and discipline for its members, approves committee assignments, and serves as the primary forum for development of party policy and legislative priorities. It hosts weekly meetings for these purposes and to communicate the party's message to members.
Basically, Aguilar is currently in charge of making sure the rank and file get seated on the proper committees, follow the party rules, and is responsible for helping craft party messaging and policy.
If the party wins control of the House of Representatives after the 2026 elections, Aguilar is in line to be the House Majority Whip which would be in charge of the vote counting operation. It would cap a rapid rise in power from an obscure freshman in the class of 2014 to House leadership.
What has Rep. Pete Aguilar focused on besides his leadership role? What key pieces of legislation has he been responsible for? All these questions and more will be answered below the fold.
Personal History
Rep. Pete Aguilar just before he ran for Congress in 2012 in the San Bernardino area.
Rep. Pete Aguilar was born in Fontana, California on June 19, 1979. He grew up in the working-class neighborhoods of San Bernardino. Aguilar was one of the first in his family to go to college. He would matriculate from the University of Redlands with a degree in government and business administration.
Aguilar first entered politics in 2001 by serving California Gov. Gray Davis in his Inland Empire offices. Eventually, he would be selected for the Redlands City Council in a bipartisan fashion to fill a vacancy. He would be elected in his own right to the city council on several occasions.
His peers would elect him as the mayor of Redlands in 2010 and again in 2012. During his tenure, he revitalized the area by balancing the budget, replenishing the rainy day fund, and still finding money for road improvements. His government was also transparent and fair to the municipal employees. It seemed like Pete Aguilar was destined for greater things.
There was an embarrassing false start in his House career in 2012. He was running for the newly created CA-31 which went from a leans GOP district to a leans Democratic district. Despite decent name recognition and favorable district lines, he did not advance in the Top 2 primary mandated by the California constitution. Instead, two Republicans got the chance to run for this district in November 2012. This was corrected in 2014 when Aguilar easily won the Top 2 primary and the general election and he has been in Congress since.
Aguilar has been climbing the ranks of House leadership for a while now:
Aguilar announced his candidacy for vice chair of the Democratic Caucus in September 2018, but lost to Katherine Clark by a vote of 144–90. By a vote of 148–82, he defeated Robin Kelly for the no. 6 spot in the Democratic Caucus. The position became vacant after Clark decided to run for Assistant Speaker. Aguilar then became vice chair in the 117th Congress and voted in as chair in the 118th Congress.
Issue Positions and Work in Congress
Rep. Pete Aguilar nominating Rep. Hakeem Jeffries for Speaker in 2024.
The DW Nominate site is no longer working for me so I cannot pinpoint where Aguilar is in relation to his peers ideologically. Given that he is a member of party leadership it is likely that he is in the center of the caucus. Progressive Punch dings him for that, giving him an overall rating of “A-” but a “B-” on key votes. Given that his district stampeded to the right politically in 2024, I’d say caution is wise on his part.
Rep. Pete Aguilar has been the primary sponsor of 3 pieces of legislation that have become laws. Two of them were to name post offices but the third was the Wounded Warrior Access Act. This act requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish and maintain a secure online tool or website to enable a claimant or their representative to make records requests related to VA claims and benefits.
In the 119th Congress, Aguilar has been the primary sponsor of 2 pieces of legislation and many leadership related resolutions regarding committee assignments. He has also co-sponsored 37 additional pieces of legislation. This is in addition to all of his leadership responsibilities as outlined in the introduction. It’s amazing his office finds the time to do any of this with such a full schedule!
The capstone of his time in Congress is his selection to the January 6th Committee. He was responsible for running the third hearing which focused on Trump’s efforts to pressure Vice President Pence to decertify the election results. Important witnesses included Greg Jacob (general counsel to Pence) and retired judge Luttig. It was seen as a successful hearing if not the flashiest one of the bunch.
Here are some old clips of him talking about the January 6th Committee.
More recently, Aguilar has been more quiet and showing a unified front with House leadership. He sits on the House Appropriations Committee which is a plum assignment for steering funds back to his district. That committee doesn’t make much in the way of headlines however.
Congressional Chronicle: Week of August 4, 2025
The latest on Capitol Hill when it comes to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Congress is adjourned until September 1, 2025 except for pro forma sessions. The votes below constitute a wrapping up of business before the Senate adjourned.
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Saturday, August 2
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By a vote of 52-41, the #Senate invoked cloture on the nomination of Andrew Puzder to be US Representative to the European Union.
Dems in favor: Hassan & Shaheen.
GOP against: Murkowski.
Not voting: Duckworth, Gallego, McConnell, Sanders, Tillis, Warner & Welch.
Next votes: ~12:30 p.m.
— Senate Press Gallery (@senatepress.bsky.social) August 2, 2025 at 10:47 AM
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By a vote of 53-44, the Senate confirmed Andrew Puzder to be US Representative to the European Union.
Dems in favor: Hassan & Shaheen.
GOP against: Murkowski.
Not voting: Gallego, McConnell & Welch.
Now voting on cloture on Brian Burch to be Ambassador to the Holy See.
— Senate Press Gallery (@senatepress.bsky.social) August 2, 2025 at 1:11 PM
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The Senate voted to invoke cloture on Brian Burch to be Ambassador to the Holy See (Vatican). Cloture was invoked (51/45/4) on a party line vote. Sen. Gallego did not vote.
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By a party line vote of 49-44, the Senate confirmed Brian Burch to be Ambassador to the Holy See.
Now voting on cloture on the nomination of Jason Quinones to be US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.
— Senate Press Gallery (@senatepress.bsky.social) August 2, 2025 at 4:16 PM
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By a vote of 49-45, the #Senate invoked cloture on the nomination of Jason Quinones to be US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.
Party line vote with Senators Gallego, Kennedy, McConnell, Tillis, Welch, and Wicker not voting.
— Senate Press Gallery (@senatepress.bsky.social) August 2, 2025 at 4:50 PM
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By a vote of 51-44, the #Senate confirmed Jason Quinones to be US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.
Dem voting in favor: Senator Durbin.
Senators Gallego, McConnell, Welch, and Wicker did not vote.
Next vote: Cloture on Jeanine Pirro to be US Attorney for DC.
— Senate Press Gallery (@senatepress.bsky.social) August 2, 2025 at 7:30 PM
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Disgusting but predictable.
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By a vote of 51-45, the Senate invoked cloture on the nomination of Jeanine Pirro to be United States Attorney for the District of Columbia.
Party line vote with Senators Gallego, Welch and Wicker not voting.
— Senate Press Gallery (@senatepress.bsky.social) August 2, 2025 at 7:47 PM
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By a vote of 50-45, the Senate confirmed Jeanine Pirro to be United States Attorney for the District of Columbia for the term of four years. This was a party line vote.
Not voting: Senators Gallego, McConnell, Scott (SC), Welch, and Wicker.
— Senate Press Gallery (@senatepress.bsky.social) August 2, 2025 at 8:24 PM
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The Senate voted to invoke cloture on Luke Lindberg to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs. Cloture was invoked (76/19/5) with a split vote. Sen. Cortez Masto voted YEA, Sens. Lujan and Padilla voted NAY, and Sen. Gallego did not vote.
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The Senate voted to confirm the nomination of Luke Lindberg to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs. The nomination was confirmed (78/17/5) with a split vote. Sen. Cortez Masto voted YEA, Sens. Lujan and Padilla voted NAY, and Sen. Gallego did not vote.
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By a vote of 50-45 the #Senate confirmed Catherine Hanson to be Chief Financial Officer, Environmental Protection Agency. This was a party line vote. Not voting: Senators Gallego, McConnell, Scott (SC), Welch, and Wicker,
— Senate Press Gallery (@senatepress.bsky.social) August 2, 2025 at 8:57 PM
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The Senate voted to confirm the nomination of John Arrigo to be Ambassador to Portugal. The nomination was confirmed (52/42/6) with a split vote. Sens. Cortez Masto, Lujan, and Padilla voting NAY. Sen. Gallego did not vote.
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The Senate voted to confirm the nomination of Sean Cairncross to be National Cyber Director. The nomination was confirmed (59/35/6) with a split vote. Sens. Cortez Masto, Lujan, and Padilla voting NAY. Sen. Gallego did not vote.
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The Senate voted to confirm the nomination of Adam Telle to be an Assistant Secretary of the Army. The nomination was confirmed (72/22/6) with a split vote. Sen. Cortez Masto voted YEA, Sens. Lujan and Padilla voted NAY, and Sen. Gallego did not vote.
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The Senate voted to confirm the nomination of Marcus Molinaro to be Federal Transit Administrator. The nomination was confirmed (71/23/6) with a split vote. Sen. Cortez Masto voted YEA, Sens. Lujan and Padilla voted NAY, and Sen. Gallego did not vote.
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Tuesday, August 5
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Sen. Ben Ray Lujan held a town hall meeting in Taos, New Mexico.
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Wednesday, August 6
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Reps. Dan Goldman, Adriano Espaillat, and Nydia Velazquez were denied entry into an ICE facility in New York City in contravention of the law.
I know it is fashionable to detest party leadership on this site. I have my quibbles with it as well. However, I think Rep. Pete Aguilar has done his job effectively. His role is outlined in the introduction and people are blaming him for things outside his elected role. He’s not meant to be some inspiring orator or desk pounder. Instead, Rep. Pete Aguilar is another part of the next generation of leadership that reflects the great diversity of the Democratic Party.
House Leadership press conference in early 2025. Rep. Pete Aguilar is to the right of the podium.
The CHC Roundup is a diary series meant to highlight the contributions of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to the Democratic Party. These 43 members of Congress range from members of the Squad to the most conservative members of the party. The series will run every Saturday morning, at 8:00AM.
