The House agreed to adjourn after Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) failed to secure the speakership in three ballots cast Tuesday, ending the day with his hard-fought bid for the gavel in jeopardy.
Competing factions will huddle over next steps after Republicans found themselves at an impasse over who should lead the lower chamber. Lawmakers adjourned by voice vote until noon Wednesday after 20 Republicans opposed McCarthy, choosing instead to throw their support behind Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH).
MCCARTHY CRITICS TAKE AIM AT SPEAKER HOPEFUL’S TACTICS TO SWAY VOTES
In the final vote of the day, McCarthy ended with the support of 202 Republican members and Jordan with 20. While Democrats were united behind incoming Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), intraparty fighting was on full display on the other side of the aisle.
McCarthy, initially opposed by 19 Republican hard-liners, lost the support of Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) during the third ballot. The additional vote went to Jordan, who, despite the support, urged his colleagues to vote for McCarthy instead.
The group of conservatives, largely aligned with or part of the House Freedom Caucus, argues McCarthy did not make enough concessions to their demands for substantial rules change, with some adding that overarching trust issues have led them not to back him on the floor.
McCarthy started the morning in a tense conference meeting by assuring his Republican colleagues that he had no intention of dropping out of the race because he’s “earned this god**** job.”
The first round of votes, which began shortly after noon, ended with Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) securing most of the 19 Republican defectors’ votes, but in the second round, they all rallied around Jordan. The math got worse for McCarthy after Donalds became the 20th vote for Jordan.
Jordan objected to his nomination and gave a speech nominating McCarthy for the role.
“I think Kevin McCarthy is the right guy to lead us,” he said, adding, “I like his fight. I like his tenacity.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), one of McCarthy’s most steadfast opponents, followed Jordan’s speech with a passionate nomination in which he accused McCarthy of corruption.
“Maybe the right person for speaker of the House isn’t someone who wants it so bad,” Gaetz said. “Maybe the right person for the job of speaker of the House isn’t someone who has sold shares of themself for more than a decade to get it.”
Pro-McCarthy members have repeatedly called for the party to unify around him, arguing that he has earned the position and delays in electing him will derail their ability to tackle the agenda they laid out on the campaign trail.
Official business can’t proceed until a speaker is elected, and Republican members are expected to discuss a path forward tonight and Wednesday morning as each faction digs in. Defectors have called for the conference to rally around a “consensus candidate” as both the pro- and anti-McCarthy coalitions vow to stick to their respective positions regardless of how many ballots it takes.
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With the lower chamber working as “a majoritarian body” since a speaker has not been elected and a rules package has not been passed, a vote on a motion was necessary to break from the clerk continuing to call roll for the gavel.
McCarthy made major concessions on the rules over the past six weeks to appease the members threatening to vote against him, including lowering the number of members needed to bring forward a motion to vacate the chair, which would allow rank-and-file members to attempt to oust party leaders, as well as ending proxy voting and reopening the Capitol.
The speaker needs 218 votes, or a simple majority of the present and voting members, to win the gavel.
