Just In | The Hill
Through 10 rounds of voting across three days so far, lawmakers have been unable to elect the next Speaker of the House.
The vast majority of votes have gone to two men: House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), the party’s official nominee for the job, and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), who House Democrats chose to lead their caucus after former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) stepped down from leadership at the end of the last Congress.
But several others have gotten votes for the role, including two people who aren’t even serving in the House. Here’s everyone who’s gotten a Speaker vote so far this week:
McCarthy
Since before voting started for the Speaker’s race on Tuesday, McCarthy has been busy trying to cut a deal with a group of far-right lawmakers who so far refuse to support him.
Three days later, McCarthy and his allies are still trying to secure enough support to win him the Speakership.
McCarthy has been the top Republican in the House since 2018 after serving under former GOP Speakers John Boehner (Ohio) and Paul Ryan (Wisc.). He previously launched an unsuccessful bid for Speaker in 2015.
Jeffries
While Republican infighting continues, Democrats have been united in their support of Jeffries, who has finished every round of voting thus far with the most votes, securing support from all 212 Democrats.
Jeffries, the first Black member to lead a party in Congress, has been in office since 2013. He was chair of the House Democratic Caucus before winning a unanimous vote to become the next leader of House Democrats after picking up Pelosi’s endorsement.
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.)
House Republicans who are refusing to back McCarthy have lobbed different lawmakers as possible alternatives to him, with Donalds the candidate of choice on Wednesday and most of Thursday.
Twenty lawmakers, including Donalds himself, threw their support behind the second-term congressman. The support for Donalds, one of two Black Republicans currently in the House, melted some on Thursday when lawmakers started to nominate a number of other candidates for the position.
Donalds is a 44-year-old former businessman and state representative in Florida who is seen in the party as a rising star.
In November, he challenged Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) for conference chair, the fourth-highest ranking position in leadership, but lost in a closed-door vote.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio)
Jordan was one of the first Republican alternatives who was nominated to oppose McCarthy. Jordan, however pledged his support to McCarthy and urged fellow Republicans to back him.
Jordan, a former chair of the House Freedom Caucus, has been in Congress since 2007. A Trump ally, Jordan is well known for his combative and fiery performances in congressional hearings.
Former President Trump
Trump, who has launched a presidential campaign for 2024, picked up his first vote for Speaker on Thursday from Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), which came after fellow McCarthy detractor Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) suggested that she may nominate Trump for the position.
Trump himself has tried to throw his weight around in the race, publicly backing McCarthy on Wednesday and urging Republicans to close the deal on McCarthy becoming the new Speaker.
But as McCarthy struggled to lock down enough GOP support, some Republicans have started to question the sway that Trump has on the race.
The Constitution does not require the Speaker to be a member of the House, or even of Congress, but every one in U.S. history has been.
Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.)
Hern became the next candidate that a faction of McCarthy opponents began to coalesce around on Thursday.
In the eighth round of voting, Hern picked up the support of Boebert and Rep.-elect Josh Brecheen (R-Okla.), and he was formally nominated for the position by Boebert in the ninth round of balloting.
Hern is set to become the chair of the Republican Study Committee, a caucus of conservative Republicans who advocate for cuts in government spending and conservative social policies. Hern’s office said in a statement Thursday that the Speakership is a position that he would “think and pray about.”
Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.)
In the first round of voting, Biggs picked up the most votes after Jeffries and McCarthy.
Biggs, who is a part of the anti-McCarthy crowd, did not pick up another vote after the first round of voting. He has thrown his support behind Jordan, Donalds and Hern through the process.
Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.)
The sole vote cast for Banks was by Brecheen in the first round of voting. Banks has supported McCarthy on every ballot thus far.
Banks, a Trump ally, supported moves to contest the 2020 presidential elections. He is also part of the Republican Study Committee.
Former Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.)
Zeldin left Congress to run for governor of New York, but that did not stop Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) from voting for him in the first round of voting.
Zeldin won the Republican nomination for governor in New York in 2022 but lost to incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul (D).
After briefly considering a run to head the Republican National Committee, he decided in December not to do so.
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