Nancy Pelosi (D), former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, visited the University Wednesday for two events, speaking to packed audiences about the future of American democracy and the upcoming midterm elections. She sat down with Susan Page, USA Today Washington Bureau Chief, for a conversation hosted by the Karsh Institute of Democracy in the Rotunda in the afternoon, then appeared at Culbreth Theatre for a discussion with Robert Costa, CBS News correspondent and Center for Politics scholar. The former House speaker spoke about the state of democracy, the upcoming midterm elections and her career in Congress, saying she is confident Democrats will win big in November.
At both sold-out events, Pelosi said she believes Democrats will take back the House in the November midterm elections, flipping the chamber from Republican control and argued that doing so is necessary to check what she described as the current administration’s disregard for the Constitution.
“We fully intend … to win this election. It's more urgent. Have you heard that this is the most important election of our time?” Pelosi said. “For this to happen, we would have to have a Congress — Democratic or Republican — respectful of the oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution.”
Pelosi said she thinks many Republican members of Congress are staying quiet out of fear rather than genuine support for the administration, and that falling presidential approval numbers will eventually push some of them to vote against their party. When asked how many seats Democrats could pick up, she said they need just three to take the majority and predicted the final number would be much higher.
Pelosi cited Abraham Lincoln’s line on public opinion as central to her strategy in the midterms, and said her focus over the past year has been making sure voters in competitive districts know exactly what their representatives have voted for.
“Lincoln said ‘Public sentiment is everything. With it, you can accomplish almost anything, without it, practically nothing,’” Pelosi said. “But for public sentiment to prevail, people have to know, and so that's why our operation … has been to make sure people in those districts know … who was voting to cut trillion dollars out of Medicaid, a half a trillion dollars out of Medicare, hundreds of millions of dollars out of SNAP.”
References to the State of the Union address, which was delivered the night before Wednesday’s event, came up throughout both discussions. Pelosi said she attended despite pushback from her family and staff. She said she was particularly struck by the applause Republican lawmakers gave when President Donald Trump mentioned cutting food assistance programs.
“I'm glad I went because when I saw those people standing up and cheering when he said, ‘we're cutting all this money from feeding the children,’ I thought, ‘I'm motivated,’” Pelosi said.
The question of whether American democracy is in danger came up at the Center for Politics — to which Pelosi said that yes, it is in danger. She referenced former President Ronald Reagan’s farewell address, which warned that closing America’s doors to immigrations would weaken the country and said she sees the same patterns playing out today with tariffs and immigration policy.
Pelosi also spoke at length about women in politics at both events. She recalled starting in Congress in 1987 as one of 23 women out of 435 members and went on to become the first woman Speaker of the House after the 2006 midterms. Pelosi said the most important thing women can bring to politics is their authenticity, not an imitation of what they think a politician should look like.
“The individuality of you is your value … be yourself. Know your power, know your why, know what your vision is,” Pelosi said.
When asked about the possibility of impeachment if Democrats retake the House at the Karsh event, Pelosi said she does not think it is the right focus. She said the party should be running on lowering costs, protecting healthcare and expanding education — not on relitigating past grievances.
Students who attended the Karsh event said the chance to hear from Pelosi directly was something they would not forget. Second-year College student Ingrid Schaefer said it was her first Karsh event and that Pelosi’s remarks left her feeling hopeful about the state of politics and the possibility of a Democratic sweep in November.
“She's such a powerhouse in politics. She really just changed a lot, especially as a woman — someone I really look up to,” Schaefer said. “I think her points on the state of politics right now were really interesting and [resonated] with me, and how I'm feeling about politics right now. It also gave me a lot of hope.”
First-year College student Nathan Matzig, who attended the Karsh event, said what stood out to him was the difference between learning about politics in classes and hearing from someone who has lived it through their career.
“I really enjoyed the event. I thought it was really interesting to hear about all of the wisdom that she's collected throughout almost 40 years in Congress,” Matzig said. “As much as we learn about politics here … it's a special thing to hear someone who's actually been in that position for 40 years and has not just political knowledge, but political wisdom.”
At the Center for Politics event, Pelosi received the organization’s 2026 Defender of Democracy Award, which was presented by Larry Sabato, director of The Center for Politics and Politics professor. Sabato pointed to her decision to bring Congress back on the night of Jan. 6, 2021 to finish certifying the presidential election results, and her role in forming the bipartisan select committee that investigated the attack.
Pelosi ended her remarks at the Center for Politics by talking about the national anthem, which was written by Francis Scott Key near Fort McHenry in Baltimore — close to where she grew up. She said one line from it feels especially relevant right now.
“‘Proof through the night that our flag is still there.’ Right now, we are in the night of this democracy,” Pelosi said. “And we must prove that our flag is still there.”
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