It must therefore continue on Wednesday afternoon (local time). It was unclear how many more votes it would take to elect a new president to the parliamentary chamber. On the first and second ballots, 19 fellow party members rebelled against McCarthy, refused to support him, and voted for other candidates. In the third ballot, the number of dissidents reached 20.
In the simplest scenario, the election of the president requires a majority of 218 votes – if all 434 newly elected lawmakers are present and vote for one candidate. If some of them abstain, the required majority is lower.
The choice of speaker is actually considered a formality. It’s been 100 years since a candidate for the Chamber of Deputies failed to obtain the necessary majority on the first ballot: in 1923, it took nine ballots to choose a leader. At that time, it took several days. The election of the president is also important because the Chamber of Deputies can only start working after the president has been nominated. He is also the speaker who swore in the deputies.
Thomas Langpaul (ORF) on speaker choice
ORF Correspondent Thomas Langpaul on the background to the Republican election debacle in the US House of Representatives election.
McCarthy defeated opponents within the party
Before the votes, McCarthy said his opponents were only concerned with personal advancement, not the country. He revealed that on Monday he was told he would only get the necessary votes if he gave certain members of the group certain jobs and budgets. One of his opponents, Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz, went so far as to say bluntly that he didn’t care if the Democratic candidate won in case of doubt, McCarthy said.
“I will always fight to put the American people first – not a few individuals trying to get their own way.” There may be a “battle” on the floor but this is about the whole group and the country, “and that’s fine with me,” the 57-year-old said on Tuesday before the meeting began. “I hold the record for the longest plenary speech,” McCarthy said. He has no problem setting the record for most votes cast in a vote for the presidency of the Chamber of Deputies.
IMAGO/UPI Photo/Ken Cedeno US Congress convened for the first time in a new constellation on Tuesday
Red disappointment in Midterms
It is worth remembering: the “red wave” expected by the Republicans did not materialize in the November elections. Conservatives barely managed to take control of the House of Representatives. In the Senate, on the other hand, the Democrats maintained a minimal majority.
For Republican House of Representatives leader McCarthy, it soon became clear that a narrow majority in the House of Representatives would be an obstacle to his quest for the third highest office in the US – after president and vice president. Parts of the party’s ultra-right wing have made it clear in recent weeks that they do not want to support McCarthy in the presidential election. Instead, they voted for far-right Andy Biggs.
Strongly Divided Republicans
The Republican faction in the House of Representatives, like the party as a whole, is divided between right-wing supporters of former President Donald Trump and more moderate members of the party. Faced with a slim majority, McCarthy had to unite the various wings behind him and even recruit members from the fringes of his faction. Five Republicans publicly announced that they would refuse to vote for McCarthy. Then they registered more resistance.
In recent weeks, McCarthy has tried to appease domestic critics with all sorts of concessions. More recently, he even agreed to significantly lower the hurdles for a possible resignation of the speaker of the House of Representatives, as reported by several US media outlets, citing internal discussions in the parliamentary group. This could be used as a constant means of pressure against him – but even with this concession, McCarthy’s majority was not secured until the end.
One of McCarthy’s opponents, Republican Congressman and chairman of the ultraconservative Freedom Caucus Scott Perry, wrote on Twitter on Tuesday that McCarthy rejected many of his group’s demands during the talks. McCarthy had a chance to become president. “He rejected her.”
Majorities Changed in Congress
In the congressional elections in early November, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 seats in the Senate were up for grabs. Both chambers met in separate sessions on Tuesday with new members for the first time. In the House of Representatives, Republicans won only a narrow majority of 222 seats. The Democrats have 212 seats. One seat is still open, as an MP died shortly after the election.
With the majority shift and his new strength in the House of Representatives, Republicans could make life difficult for Biden in the future. They have already announced parliamentary inquiries into the president and other members of the government and can block legislation at will.