Nancy Pelosi: Staying On As Minority Leader 'Up To My Caucus ... And My Family'

Nancy Pelosi: Staying On As Minority Leader 'Up To My Caucus ... And My Family'
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House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. holds a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 13, 2012. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON -- House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) never likes to talk about whether she'll stick around as her party's leader if Democrats don't win back the House in November. But she said Friday that the decision will ultimately come down to what her colleagues and loved ones want her to do.

"It's really up to my caucus who would lead the party next, and my family as well, I think, after all this time," Pelosi said during a roundtable with reporters.

Pelosi initially balked at the question of whether she would remain the minority leader if Democrats don't take back the House in November, namely because she insists Democrats have a good shot at winning back the 25 seats necessary to take back the majority. Political analysts say otherwise.

"Minority? Minority?" she said, when asked if she would stay on to lead her party if Democrats don't become the majority. "Even today, I think we have a more than 50/50 chance of winning."

Pelosi dodged a question by The Huffington Post about how her family feels regarding the prospect of her staying in Congress for another two years.

"You expect me to have that conversation? I love you all dearly but...," she said to laughs.

Pelosi recalled when she had to make the decision two years ago, when the House flipped back to Republican control, and she said even her husband wasn't sure what she was going to do. She recounted a story about calling her husband shortly after the 2010 elections to tell him she had just sent out a letter to all of her colleagues.

"You know what he said? 'What did it say?'" Pelosi said. "He didn't know. Not that we hadn't discussed it, but he said, 'What did it come down to?' I said it came down to the members saying, 'Well, you've got to stay.' And outside friends, shall we say, saying, 'We're in if you're in.'"

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