Republican Kevin McCarthy has lost the 14th round of voting for the presidency of the United States House of Representatives. McCarthy was expected to eventually win a majority to lead the Republican-controlled House, but his victory lap was derailed by a right-wing rebellion within his own ranks that extended the contest to one of the longest in history. The motion to adjourn proceedings until Monday was defeated and the House of Representatives began voting for the fifteenth time to choose a speaker.
By the final tally, McCarthy got 216 votes while Democratic nominee Hakeem Jeffries got 212. Andy Biggs got the support of 2 Representatives, as did Jim Jordan. According to these results, McCarthy was only one vote away from the number he needed to clinch victory.
Six Republicans withheld their votes or voted for other candidates, hours after McCarthy predicted “It’s going to happen.”
Hoping to secure enough votes to win, he had called an hour-long recess for the chamber, with lawmakers returning at 10 pm (0300 GMT Saturday) for another round of voting.
The turning point came when hardline Rep. Matt Gaetz withheld his vote for McCarthy. Party leaders hovered over the Florida Republican for several minutes trying to persuade him to change his mind before conceding defeat.
The result left the House rudderless after a week of repeated voting that highlighted divisions among Republicans and raised questions about their ability to govern. The chamber has not seen this level of congressional dysfunction since 1859.
(With agency contributions)
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