Kevin McCarthy also lost as Speaker of the House in the third ballot. The numbers are getting worse for him: the 212 Dem against their leader Hakim Jeffries is solid, while McCarthy has lost another vote and stands at 202 with 20 likes for the “hawk” Jim Jordan (who supports him though). There were 19 no votes in previous elections, while Italian-American MP Steve Scalise’s odds are rising.
McCarthy wants to succeed Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House.
Just before today’s vote, Republican hawk Jordan had urged his fellow party members to support McCarthy, but 20 “dissidents” voted for him anyway. McCarthy’s allies have said they will continue with new rounds of voting until a path is found to elect him speaker. Until then, the Chamber’s activities will remain frozen.
Younger (average age 46 in the chamber and 50 in the Senate), more diverse (record for Latinos, first native-born senator in almost two decades), but also more divided. The new US Congress, the 118th, took office today with the traditional swearing-in ceremony, the salute to the newcomers and the first knot following the era of the legendary Nancy Pelosi, who was greeted back as a humble MP with a standing ovation: the inauguration his successor after the Grand Old Party narrowly recaptured the House of Representatives in Midterm (222 to 212, one seat vacant), while the Dem retained the Senate with an additional seat. But Republicans have been divided on the election of Speaker, the state’s third office, with a group of congressmen from the more radical and Trumpian wings determined to block the path of 57-year-old California native Kevin McCarthy. Five die-hard ‘No Kevin’s who accuse him of not being conservative enough or having personal disagreements with him: enough to defeat the quorum of 218 votes, as the 212 Dems collectively elected their flag candidate Hakim Jeffries, the first African-American leader supported in the house. The five voted for Arizona’s ultra-conservative rival Andy Biggs, later endorsed by as many party colleagues, while 9 voted for other candidates.
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