A House in Disarray

Republicans have failed to elect a speaker after multiple rounds of voting

After six votes in two days, Republicans have failed to elect a speaker.

Kevin McCarthy has failed to sway some 20 Republican holdouts to vote for him for House Speaker, led primarily by Matt Gaetz, Lauren Boebert, and other members of the House Freedom Caucus. Instead, Boebert nominated Florida Rep. Byron Donalds earlier in the day as an alternative to McCarthy, but he fell well short of the needed votes.

Mona Salama @MonaSalama_

Rep. Lauren Boebert nominated Donalds again as the 3rd candidate "Our job is not to coordinate the biggest fundraiser or rubber stamp the status quo... It's to use our votes to elect a speaker who will enable us to get our country back on track... Byron Donalds is that leader"

Donalds, first elected to the House in 2021, had the support of Texas Rep. Chip Roy and others who touted his upbringing by his single mom and his physical stature as reasons why he was qualified to be speaker.

After the third vote, the House reconvened later in the evening and voted to adjourn. It was a close vote that looked, for a while, as though it might not happen and would subject McCarthy to a seventh round of voting. Adding to the drama, some Republican members waited until the last minute to cast their vote. Those that voted late are believed to be the same members who voted against McCarthy earlier in the day. Possibly as a demonstration to once again show their leverage and make McCarthy a little more miserable after an already miserable day.

While the majority of Democrats voted against adjourning. Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego cited the importance of the House electing a Speaker for basic functional purposes as a reason to stay and force Republicans to work out a compromise and hopefully elect someone by the end of the day.

Another failed round of voting could have subjected McCarthy to more embarrassment and increased pressure to step aside and allow another member to run for the position of speaker.

Lousiana Rep. Steve Scalise has been mentioned as a possible candidate to replace McCarthy should that happen. Scalise is well respected by many in the Republican party and has previously held a leadership position, previously serving as Minority Whip. Scalise has had his share of controversies over the years but has garnered a lot of goodwill since he was shot at a Congressional baseball practice in 2017.

The House will reconvene tomorrow at noon.