Table Of Content
Glassman said this is often used as a tactic by speaker candidates who convince their colleagues to, in essence, abstain as a compromise between voting for another candidate and supporting their candidacy. Candidates for speaker are nominated from the floor by members of their parties. There is always one Democratic nominee and one Republican, but the speaker does not have to be a member of the majority party or even a member of Congress. Typically it takes a majority of the House’s 435 members, 218 votes, to become the speaker.
Johnson
As an aide left the meeting, a CNN reporter was able to observe through the open door that GOP members packed the room, listening quietly. Maybe a dozen members were waiting to speak on the microphone that stood in the center hallway. McCarthy said opponents came to him with “personal asks” on Monday night, such as committee assignments and special assignments.
More From the Los Angeles Times
The coming speaker election will be just the fifth time since 1913 (the earliest year in the Congressional Research Service report) that a new speaker has been elected mid-term. And it is only the second time in those 102 years that the speaker resigned before their term is finished. Thursday's local elections have been pencilled in as a day of peril for Rishi Sunak for so long, it's hard to remember when Tory turbulence - and maybe even a leadership challenge - was not expected after 2 May. The No. 2 Republican at the time did not have the votes, and the No. 3 declined to run.
Rep. Ralph Norman tells GOP he will vote for Andy Biggs on first ballot of House speaker election
It marked a victory for the far right that has become a dominant force in the Republican Party, which rose up this month to effectively dictate the removal of an establishment speaker and the installation of an arch-conservative replacement. Jeffries declined to say whether Democrats would help McCarthy in any way or support a motion to adjourn Tuesday’s proceedings. GOP Rep. Mike Rogers, a McCarthy ally and incoming Chair of the House Armed Services, said in the meeting that anyone who votes against McCarthy won't get a committee, two sources tell CNN. As GOP leader Kevin McCarthy entered the room, he received a standing ovation from most people before he went over the rules package, sources tell CNN.
Leadership List
After the initial speaker vote, the clerk called the names of the members who did not answer the first call of the roll. He earned 200 votes while House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries won 212 votes. The 20 Republicans who voted against Jordan included House Appropriations Chair Kay Granger, Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida, Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado and a quartet of New York Republicans in purple districts.
It will need to come up as a suspension vote — an expedited process that requires a two-thirds majority for passage. The House is expected to vote on a resolution in support of Israel on Wednesday afternoon, according to a notice from the House Democratic whip. House Speaker Mike Johnson entered the speaker's office for the first time after being sworn in, with his new name plate hanging above the door. The members who ousted McCarthy also told reporters that they have no regrets now about ousting McCarthy. "If none of those things happen, then you're in for a real chaos situation because then you have to try to find candidates somewhere in the party who weren't even on the radar screen," Glassman said. Lawmakers traditionally vote for their party's nominee, but some in recent years have chosen to vote "present" or not vote.
“We are unified and so proud to have elected Mike Johnson as speaker of the People’s House,” Elise Stefanik says to kick off a news conference on the Capitol steps. The elevation of Mr. Johnson, 51, an architect of the effort to overturn the 2020 election and a religious conservative opposed to abortion rights, homosexuality and gay marriage, further cemented the Republican Party’s lurch to the right. It came after a historic fight that began when the hard right ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Oct. 3, and raged on as the divided House G.O.P. nominated and then quickly discarded three other candidates to succeed him. If no one amasses a majority of votes cast, it goes to a second ballot, and on and on. If it goes to multiple ballots, other candidates may have their names put in for nomination.
Johnson wins speaker vote 220-209
Rep. Mike Johnson wins GOP nomination for speaker - CBS News
Rep. Mike Johnson wins GOP nomination for speaker.
Posted: Tue, 24 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
The former president noted that all of them have supported him "in both mind and spirit" since he won the White House in 2016 and said the five candidates "are beyond reproach and represent the absolute best there is in the Republican Party." "We need to move swiftly to address our national security needs and to avoid a shutdown in 22 days. Even though we have real disagreements about important issues, there should be mutual effort to find common ground wherever we can," the president said. "This is a time for all of us to act responsibly, and to put the good of the American people and the everyday priorities of American families above any partisanship."
It's a slim majority of 9 that allows the GOP to lose only four votes from their side on any measure if Democrats are united against it. Rep. Jim Jordan, Republican of Ohio, lost a second round of voting Wednesday. With 22 Republicans voting against him, Jordan had even less support than he did in the first round. "I have to do the right thing by my party and by my country. So, there's lots to be thought about, and I'll give all of that consideration in the days to come."
The clerk then appoints lawmakers from each party as tellers to tally the votes. In the weeks after an election, the Republican conference and the Democratic caucus hold an informal vote among their members to decide who they want to nominate to lead their party in January. Rep. Kevin McCarthy won the majority of the Republican vote in a closed-door November meeting. Weeks later, Democrats unanimously chose Rep. Hakeem Jeffries to become their leader as the party transitions into the minority. On the 15th ballot, a total not reached since before the Civil War, McCarthy finally got the absolute majority of votes necessary to be elected speaker of the House. By a vote of 216 to 212 for Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) with six voting present, he finally won the longest speaker’s election since Rep. William Pennington (R-NJ) won after 44 ballots on the eve of the Civil War.
The most recent Democrat, however, is Nancy Pelosi, still a House member and the House speaker emerita. She comes in at fifth on the longevity roster, having served one day shy of eight years from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2019 to 2023. His predecessor, Frederick Gillett of Massachusetts, also had the top job for less than five years. But when he left after the 1924 session, his party was still firmly in control and had just elected President Calvin Coolidge to a full term. The well-respected No. 2 Republican, Eric Cantor of Virginia, had lost his primary in 2014. The No. 3, McCarthy, soon ran aground over remarks in a TV interview and lacked the votes to be speaker.
A bloc of Republicans had objected to the speaker bid of Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, the hard-right co-founder of the Freedom Caucus, because of his role in helping lead Mr. Trump’s efforts to overturn the election. A floor fight has only taken place once since the Civil War, exactly 100 years ago, when it took nine ballots for Rep. Frederick Gillett of Massachusetts to be elected speaker in 1923. Rep. Kevin McCarthy has the support of a majority of Republicans to be the GOP leader but has so far not secured enough votes to become House speaker. When the new Congress assembles Tuesday, it will establish a quorum, and then its first action will be a roll call vote to elect a new speaker. Present votes subtract from that total, thus lowering the threshold for a majority of votes.
Almost immediately after Mr. Johnson was elected, lawmakers began debating a resolution expressing solidarity with Israel and condemning Hamas, which passed overwhelmingly. Mr. Johnson has opposed continued funding for the war in Ukraine, which has emerged as a bitter fault line in the G.O.P. and in the spending battles that he will have to navigate in the coming days. The vote put him second in line to the presidency, capping an extraordinary period of twists and turns on Capitol Hill.
The three Republicans and other hard-right members of the conference are furious at the speaker for bringing up votes to provide aid for Ukraine, particularly without U.S. border security provisions attached. Rep. Paul Gosar, of Arizona, signed onto the "motion to vacate" authored by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, of Georgia, both Republicans said Friday. If brought to the floor as a privileged resolution, it would force a vote within two legislative days on whether to oust Johnson as speaker. Before members are assigned to committees, each committee’s size and the proportion of Republicans to Democrats must be decided by the party leaders. The total number of committee slots allotted to each party is approximately the same as the ratio between majority party and minority party members in the full chamber.
