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U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-New York, was the keynote speaker at the state’s largest annual downstate gathering of Democrats on Wednesday. Jeffries is poised to become U.S. House speaker if Democrats retake the chamber in 2026.

He said President Donald Trump is a threat to American democracy and that Democrats can win back Congress if they stand up for middle class values.

But that will be a challenge for the party, which has its lowest approval rating in history, according to recent polling.

This summary was written by the reporters and editors who worked on the story.

SPRINGFIELD – The man who hopes to be the next speaker of the U.S. House told an audience of Illinois Democrats Wednesday that President Donald Trump is a threat to American democracy

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