Pelosi predicts Democrats will win House seats in November, expanding control of chamber

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday, upon chamber members returning to Capitol Hill from summer break, predicted she and fellow Democrats will gain seats in November, amid most projections showing they will lose about a dozen.

Punchbowl News says its reporters asked Pelosi twice whether Democrats, who already control the House, would win seats in the 2022 midterms.  

"Yes, indeed," the California Democrat reportedly said the first time. 

In a follow-up conversation, she reportedly expanded on her remarks, saying, "I was just in 12 cities in 12 days. We're ready. And understand this. Because of the leadership of [Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Sean Patrick Maloney], we're ready."

Referring to the Supreme Court in June striking down Roe v. Wade; the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot; and fellow Democrat Joe Biden winning the presidency in November 2020, respectively, Pelosi also said: "So when the Dobbs decision came down, it wasn’t one of those 'If only we had known.' No. We believed we were going to win from Jan. 6 on – well, even November of last year on.

"So we’re ready. Mobilizing on the ground ... messaging, raising the money. But the biggest factor of all is not only do we believe, the candidates believe. So for a year, 10 months, eight months, terrific people had put themselves out there believing they could win in those districts."

Election handicappers have dialed back early predictions of an historically-likely GOP landslide, but most still say a 10-20 seats gain is likely.

Punchbowl also included in its report that in 2010 Pelosi predicted right up until Election Day that House Democrats were going to win, only to lose 63 seats and the majority for eight years.