The House Democratic Steering Committee Wednesday nominated Henry A. Waxman to be chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee next year — a stinging rebuke of the sitting chairman, John D. Dingell .

Waxman won a 25-22 vote over Dingell in a closed-door meeting.

Because Dingell got more than 13 votes, he can be nominated to run against Waxman at Thursday’s Democratic Caucus meeting, at which all of the Democrats elected to the 111th Congress are eligible to vote.

Democrats said the last time the Steering Committee declined to nominate the top Democrat on a committee to remain in that position was in 1996, when Henry B. Gonzalez of Texas was rejected as ranking Democrat on the Banking panel.

The full caucus overturned that decision.

Dingell, D-Mich., is the House’s longest-serving current member, a skilled legislator renowned for protecting the interests of his state’s auto industry. He is expected to draw strong backing from moderate Democrats, including many of the fiscally conservative “Blue Dogs,” as well as support from the Congressional Black Caucus.

Waxman, D-Calif., has long clashed with Dingell by pushing for stronger environmental laws. He is expected to draw support from fellow liberals. Waxman, who is currently chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is aligned with Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California.

Pelosi has remained publicly neutral in the race for the Energy and Commerce panel chairmanship, but many Democrats doubt Waxman would have attempted the challenge without her tacit support.

Some Democrats have expressed concern that ousting Dingell would upset the seniority system and divide the caucus at a moment when the party has won the White House and cemented its hold on Congress.

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