American actor Mark Ruffalo has called for support for an online petition demanding that members of the US House of Representatives choose a new speaker and reject Hakeem Jeffries' bid to lead the chamber in January 2027, in a post on his official account on X in which he directed his followers to the petition published on Change.org.

The campaign comes amid criticism of Jeffries' pro-Israel positions and his support for US military aid to Israel during its war on the Gaza Strip, with the petition demanding that Democrats choose a leadership that reflects voters' orientations, not the calculations of the party establishment alone.

The petition, launched by Nicole White last September, calls on lawmakers to review Jeffries' political record, his positions on foreign policy and US military aid, as well as the funding sources of his campaigns, before voting on the speakership.

Jeffries had officially announced his candidacy for House speaker in a letter to his Democratic colleagues on November 4, as the new Congress prepares to convene in January 2027.