On Tuesday, U.S. Representatives aim to determine the next Speaker of the House.
The road to this week’s vote began earlier this month. On Tuesday, October 3, a collection of conservative lawmakers voted Kevin McCarthy out of the legislative body’s most visible position.
“I may have lost this vote today, but as I walk out of this chamber I feel fortunate to have served,” McCarthy said after becoming the first Speaker of the House to be publicly stripped of their title by members of their own party.
Eight days after Republicans stripped McCarthy of his title, Steve Scalise secured the party’s nomination for the legislative body’s most visible position. However, Scalise backed out of the race hours later because he reportedly lacked the 217 votes needed to secure the position in a full, two-party vote.
“I know we’ve been following this. It’s been quite a journey and there’s still a long way to go. I just shared with my colleagues that I’m withdrawing my name as a candidate for the Speaker-designee,” Scalise said last week.
One day later, Rep. Jim Jordan secured the Republican Party’s support in his pursuit to become Speaker of the House. Still, Jordan only received 124 votes from fellow Republican lawmakers, leaving him well short of the 217 votes he need in a full, two-party.
Despite reportedly being well short of receiving the votes needed for the position, Jim Jordan and fellow Republicans in the House are pushing to hold a full vote on Tuesday.
“We will go to the floor tomorrow,” Jordan said.
“It’s not about pressuring anybody. It’s just about, we’ve got to have a Speaker.”
