Pelosi served as the House’s speaker from 2007 until 2011, the only woman to ever hold that position. Her return to the speakership position makes her only the seventh individual to do so on non-consecutive terms.

At 78 years old, Pelosi will tie former Democratic Texas Rep. Sam Rayburn as the oldest person elected to the role.

Despite ultimately running for the nomination unopposed, Pelosi faced a challenge from a small, but vocal, fraction of Democratic congressmen and congressmen-elect who expressed their opposition her ascension to the leadership position.

A cohort of House Democrats began circulating a letter in mid-November in an effort to block the California congresswoman from winning the nod. Sixteen Democratic representatives signed the letter, citing the need for a new direction within the Democratic Party. However, the dissenters were not able to find an adequate challenger, and ultimately various signees of the letter began taking back their opposition and supporting Pelosi.

Pelosi earned the Democratic nomination in November, winning 203 members of her caucus. Of the 239 votes cast, 32 voted in opposition, three were left blank, and one member was absent for the vote.