Republican Kevin McCarthy’s bid to become Speaker of the United States House of Representatives was derailed in a series of votes on Tuesday, as hardline conservatives rebelled against him, throwing the new Republican majority into disarray.
McCarthy twice fell short of the 218-vote majority required to succeed Democrat Nancy Pelosi as House Speaker in what could be a brutal showdown between hardliners and the overwhelming majority of House Republicans. The House failed to elect a speaker on the first ballot for the first time in a century.
McCarthy also appeared to be lacking in support as the vote entered a third round on Tuesday afternoon, with at least 20 Republicans voting for popular conservative Representative Jim Jordan to try to block McCarthy, despite the fact that Jordan did not run.
McCarthy gave no indication that he would drop out of the race after the second ballot, telling reporters, “We stay in it ’til we win… it will eventually change.”
A protracted speaker election could jeopardize House Republicans’ ability to move quickly on priorities such as investigations into President Joe Biden’s administration and family, as well as legislative priorities involving the economy, U.S. energy independence, and border security.
A standoff would effectively paralyze the House and force lawmakers to consider another candidate. Along with Jordan, incoming Majority Leader Steve Scalise was considered a possible candidate.
Republican McCarthy Stumped by Biggs and Gaetz
McCarthy had served as House minority leader and sought to become speaker, the second in line of succession to the presidency of the United States, only to face stiff opposition from his party’s right flank.
In Tuesday’s vote, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries defeated McCarthy by 212 to 203 votes. Representative Andy Biggs, a hardline conservative, ran against McCarthy on the first ballot and received 10 votes.
A majority of those voting, rather than a plurality, is required to select a speaker.
In the second vote, popular conservative Jordan attempted to rally support for California Republican McCarthy, only to be defeated by McCarthy opponent Matt Gaetz of Florida.
“We need to rally around him,” Jordan said passionately on the House floor. “I believe Kevin McCarthy is the right person to lead us.”
Jordan, 58, is a close friend of former President Donald Trump and a co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus.
Challenges Republicans face
Jordan, a former college wrestler who represents an Ohio congressional district, was nominated as McCarthy’s opponent on Tuesday but voted for him three times. Jordan is preparing to lead the House Judiciary Committee’s investigation into the Justice Department and FBI.
It was an unsettling start to McCarthy’s new majority, and it highlights the challenges Republicans may face over the next two years as they prepare for the 2024 presidential election. Their slim majority gives a small group of hardliners more clout, allowing them to focus on defeating Democrats and pushing various investigations.
Republicans won a narrow 222-212 majority in the midterm elections in November, which means McCarthy – or any candidate for speaker – will need to unite a fractious caucus in order to take the gavel. Democrats have a slim Senate majority.
McCarthy’s opponents are concerned that he is less deeply invested in the House’s culture wars and partisan rivalries, which have dominated since Trump’s presidency.
McCarthy tried to persuade the holdouts during a closed-door party meeting before the vote, vowing to stay in the race until he received the necessary votes, but many attendees emerged unscathed.
It was unclear whether McCarthy, who has a large majority of his caucus’ support, would be able to overcome the hard-line opposition and win the speakership. He ran for speaker once before, in 2015, but was defeated by conservative opposition.
McCarthy has worked in politics his entire adult life, first as a congressional staffer, then as a state legislator before being elected to the House in 2006. McCarthy, as speaker, would be well placed to thwart Biden’s legislative ambitions.
Any Republican speaker, however, will face the difficult task of managing a House Republican caucus that is moving ever further to the right, with uncompromising tendencies and – at least among some lawmakers – close allegiances to Trump.
Over a two-month period in the 1850s, the record number of voting rounds to elect a House speaker was 133.
After Nancy Pelosi, the first female speaker, announced her intention to step down, the Democrats chose Jeffries to serve as minority leader. Pelosi will continue to serve as a representative.
Republican civil war could cost them in 2024
The growing enmity between pro-Trump and anti-Trump forces raises the prospect of something no Republican wants: a GOP civil war that could split the party in two, paving the way for Democrats to win big in 2024.
The fear is that two years of infighting will jeopardize the White House. Republicans are concerned that it will give Democrats control of the House and Senate for at least two more years.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) raised the possibility last week, saying his “greatest fear” is a repeat of the 1964 party split between Barry Goldwater and Nelson Rockefeller.
“I can see a Trump-anti-Trump war over the next two years that guarantees Biden’s re-election in a landslide and guarantees Democrats control everything,” Gingrich told The Hill.
Top Republicans are not yet ready to panic and declare that a repeat of 1964 is unlikely, as former President Trump and other potential candidates stake their claims.
“There are divisions in the Democratic Party. “You have tensions here, but no,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). “It is the norm for political parties to be dysfunctional. It is not an exception on either side.”
Several candidates pushed across the primary finish line by the former president failed to win key Senate races, including Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Nevada. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) of Georgia defeated Trump-backed Republican candidate Herschel Walker.
Republicans are still picking up the pieces from the disastrous 2022 midterm elections, in which the party expected to retake the Senate after a two-year hiatus. Neither of these things occurred, leaving the GOP to plan for the future while determining how much influence Trump will have.
