January 2023 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election

File:Johnson-large.jpg oversaw the 2023 election of a speaker as the acting presiding officer.]]

The speaker is the presiding officer of the U.S. House of Representatives. The House elects its speaker at the beginning of a new Congress (i.e. {{linktext|biennially}}, after Election Day) or when a speaker dies, resigns, or is removed from the position intra-term. Since 1839, the House has elected speakers by roll call vote.{{cite web |last=Forte |first=David F. |date=October 19, 2010 |title=Essays on Article I: Speaker of the House |url=https://www.heritage.org/constitution/#!/articles/1/essays/10/speaker-of-the-house |access-date=January 4, 2023 |website=Heritage Guide to The Constitution |publisher=The Heritage Foundation |archive-date=August 22, 2020 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200822232208/https://www.heritage.org/constitution/%23!/amendments/8/essays/161/cruel-and-unusual-punishment#!/articles/1/essays/10/speaker-of-the-house |url-status=unfit }} Following a congressional election and the adjournment of the prior congress, there being no speaker, the House clerk summons, convenes, and calls the House to order. After prayer offered by the House chaplain, the clerk leads the representatives in the Pledge of Allegiance before ordering a roll call conducted by the reading clerk. The clerk and its officers then order and oversee the election of a speaker. During these processes, the clerk must "preserve order and decorum and decide all questions of order", which is subject to appeal to the body.{{cite web|url=https://www.everycrsreport.com/files/20181219_RL30725_45e6fed3e44b9356413ddaab18565a4a43b1f3dc.pdf|title=The First Day of a New Congress: A Guide to Proceedings on the House Floor, rev. Dec. 19, 2018|publisher=Congressional Research Service|date=December 19, 2018|access-date=January 4, 2023|archive-date=April 27, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210427213257/https://www.everycrsreport.com/files/20181219_RL30725_45e6fed3e44b9356413ddaab18565a4a43b1f3dc.pdf|url-status=live}}

Traditionally, each of the party caucuses and conferences selects a candidate for the speakership from among its senior leaders prior to the roll call. Representatives are not restricted to voting for the candidate nominated by their party but generally do, as the outcome of the election effectively determines which one is the majority party and consequently will organize the House.{{cite web |last1=Heitshusen |first1=Valerie |last2=Beth |first2=Richard S. |date=January 4, 2019 |title=Speakers of the House: Elections, 1913–2019 |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL30857.pdf |access-date=January 4, 2023 |website=CRS Report for Congress |publisher=Congressional Research Service |location=Washington, D.C. |archive-date=July 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210703214715/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL30857.pdf |url-status=live }} Without a speaker, members-elect of the House cannot be sworn in.{{efn|The Twentieth Amendment states that all members' terms begin at noon on January 3. Until officially sworn-in, members are referred to as members-elect.}} The House is unable to conduct any business other than electing the speaker.{{usc|2|25}}{{cite news |last=Jalonick |first=Mary Clare |date=January 5, 2023 |title=US House has no members, no rules as speaker race drags on |url=https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-house-of-representatives-us-republican-party-billy-long-5dc5377382e010d1071c7afbfb694f3b |access-date=January 5, 2023 |work=Associated Press |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105011901/https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-house-of-representatives-us-republican-party-billy-long-5dc5377382e010d1071c7afbfb694f3b |url-status=live }} Because the rules of the House are adopted for each new Congress, the House will not have rules until the election is complete allowing the members to be sworn in and the House to adopt rules.{{cite news |last1=Forrest |first1=Jack |display-authors=et al |date=January 4, 2023 |title=The lack of a new speaker has ground House business to a halt |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/04/politics/what-happens-without-house-speaker/index.html |access-date=January 5, 2023 |work=CNN |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104190541/https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/04/politics/what-happens-without-house-speaker/index.html |url-status=live }}

Representatives that choose to vote for someone other than their party's nominated candidate usually vote for another member within the party or vote present, which entails abstention. Moreover, as the Constitution does not explicitly state that the speaker must be an incumbent member of the House, it is permissible for representatives to nominate and vote for someone who is not a member of the House at the time, and non-members have been nominated and received a few votes in various speaker elections over the past several years.{{cite news |last=Grier |first=Peter |date=September 25, 2015 |title=John Boehner exit: Anyone can run for House speaker, even you |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/Decoder/2015/0925/John-Boehner-exit-Anyone-can-run-for-House-speaker-even-you |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=The Christian Science Monitor |archive-date=November 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181125133327/https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/Decoder/2015/0925/John-Boehner-exit-Anyone-can-run-for-House-speaker-even-you |url-status=live }} Nevertheless, every person elected speaker has been a member. Upon winning election, the new speaker is immediately sworn in by the House dean, the chamber's longest-serving member.{{cite web |date=October 28, 2011 |title=Election of the Speaker Overview |url=https://constitution.laws.com/house-of-representatives/election-of-the-speaker |access-date=January 11, 2019 |website=Laws.com |archive-date=August 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190827095618/https://constitution.laws.com/house-of-representatives/election-of-the-speaker |url-status=live }}{{cite web |date=November 9, 2016 |title=Fathers/Deans of the House |url=https://history.house.gov/Institution/Seniority/Deans-of-the-House/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |publisher=United States House of Representatives |archive-date=January 12, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190112044354/https://history.house.gov/Institution/Seniority/Deans-of-the-House/ |url-status=live }} The new speaker then administers the oath en masse to the rest of the members of the House.{{cite web |date=January 3, 2013 |title=Oath of Office |website=US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives |url=https://history.house.gov/Institution/Origins-Development/Oath-of-Office/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-date=November 9, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191109100854/https://history.house.gov/Institution/Origins-Development/Oath-of-Office/ |url-status=live }}

To be elected speaker, a candidate must receive a majority of the current votes cast, as opposed to a majority of the entire membership of the House—at the time 218 votes, in a House of 434 members, due to one vacancy caused by the death of Donald McEachin of Virginia.{{cite news |last1=Looker |first1=Rachel |last2=Elbeshbishi |first2=Sarah |last3=Woodall |first3=Candy |last4=Jackson |first4=David |last5=Tran |first5=Ken |date=January 3, 2023 |title=McCarthy loses first ballot in House speaker race in face of GOP infighting: live updates |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/01/03/new-congress-house-senate-live-updates/10944392002/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=USA Today |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104001444/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/01/03/new-congress-house-senate-live-updates/10944392002/ |url-status=live }} There have only been a few instances during the past century where a person received a majority of the votes cast and thus won the election while failing to obtain a majority of the full membership. It had happened most recently in 2021, when Nancy Pelosi was elected with 216 votes (as opposed to 218). Such a variation in the number of votes necessary to win a given election might arise due to vacancies, absentees, or members being present but not voting. If no candidate wins a majority of the votes cast for a person by name, then the roll call is repeated until a speaker is elected. The most recent multi-ballot election prior to the January 2023 contest occurred in December 1923, when a closely divided House needed nine ballots to elect Frederick H. Gillett speaker.{{cite news|author=The Associated Press|date=January 5, 2023|title=No end to deadlock: U.S. House adjourns as McCarthy fails on 11th ballot to be Speaker|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/congress-speaker-stalemate-mccarthy-1.6704745|access-date=January 7, 2023|work=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106235057/https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/congress-speaker-stalemate-mccarthy-1.6704745|url-status=live}}

File:Official photo of Speaker Nancy Pelosi in 2019.jpg of California, the outgoing speaker, retired from the position and announced her support for Hakeem Jeffries of New York.]]

During the run-up to the 2019 speaker election, Nancy Pelosi, who had been the Democratic Caucus' leader and nominee in every speaker election since 2003, struck a deal with several caucus members in which she promised that she would retire from the position of speaker after the 2022 congressional elections in exchange for those members' votes in that speakership election, which she saw as necessary in order for her to win a majority.{{cite web |last1=Caygle |first1=Heather |last2=Bade |first2=Rachael |last3=Bresnahan |first3=John |date=December 12, 2018 |title=Pelosi clinches deal with rebels in speakership standoff |url=https://www.politico.com/story/2018/12/12/pelosi-strikes-deal-with-dem-rebels-paving-the-way-for-her-speakership-1059825 |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=Politico |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104150758/https://www.politico.com/story/2018/12/12/pelosi-strikes-deal-with-dem-rebels-paving-the-way-for-her-speakership-1059825 |url-status=live }} By early 2022, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of New York was viewed as the top prospect to succeed Pelosi if she were to retire as the leader of the Democratic Caucus.{{cite web |last1=Marcos |first1=Cristina |last2=Schnell |first2=Mychael |title=Pelosi says she will run for reelection in 2022 |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/591339-pelosi-says-she-will-run-for-reelection-in-2022/ |website=The Hill |access-date=October 25, 2023 |date=January 26, 2022}} However, ahead of the 2022 election Pelosi refused to confirm whether she intended to honor her pledge to serve no further terms as leader.{{cite web |last1=Walsh |first1=Deirdre |title=Pelosi is running for reelection but is silent on a bid to retain her leadership post |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/01/25/1075657198/nancy-pelosi-reelection |publisher=NPR |access-date=October 25, 2023 |date=January 25, 2022}} On November 17, 2022, the same day that news outlets projected that Democrats had failed to defend their House majority in the midterm elections,{{cite web |last1=Quinn |first1=Melissa |last2=Becket |first2=Stefan |last3=Navaroo |first3=Aaron |last4=Linton |first4=Caroline |last5=Corujo |first5=Cristina |last6=Woolley |first6=John |title=House 2022 midterm elections results - Republicans win majority to control House, CBS News projects |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/elections-2022-house-of-representatives-results-control-democrats-republicans/ |website=CBS News |access-date=October 25, 2023 |date=November 17, 2022}} Pelosi delivered a speech on the House floor in which she announced that she would not run again for a leadership position.{{cite news|last1=Vazquez|first1=Maegan|last2=Vogt|first2=Adrienne|last3=Chowdhury|first3=Maureen|last4=Hammond|first4=Elise|last5=Myer|first5=Matt|date=November 17, 2022|title=Pelosi addresses her future plans after GOP wins House|work=CNN|url=https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/nancy-pelosi-announcement-house-democrats/index.html|access-date=January 4, 2023|archive-date=November 22, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221122145953/https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/nancy-pelosi-announcement-house-democrats/index.html|url-status=live}} The following day, Jeffries distributed a letter to House Democratic Caucus members declaring his intent to run to succeed Pelosi.{{cite web |last1=Chatelain |first1=Ryan |last2=Frey |first2=Kevin |title=Hakeem Jeffries announces bid to lead House Democrats |url=https://ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/politics/2022/11/18/hakeem-jeffries-announces-bid-to-replace-pelosi-as-house-democratic-leader |website=NY1 |access-date=October 25, 2023 |language=en |date=November 18, 2023}} No opponent challenged Jeffries, and on November 30 the Democratic Caucus voted to make Jeffries its leader during the 118th Congress and its nominee for the speakership election.{{cite web |last1=Jackson |first1=Herb |title=Jeffries elected first Black leader of a congressional caucus |url=https://rollcall.com/2022/11/30/jeffries-elected-first-black-leader-of-a-congressional-caucus/#:~:text=House%20Democrats%20on%20Wednesday%20officially,lead%20a%20congressional%20party%20caucus. |website=Roll Call |access-date=October 25, 2023 |date=November 30, 2022}} Jeffries is the first black person ever nominated for House speaker.{{cite web |last1=Burnett |first1=Elena |last2=Kenin |first2=Justine |title=Hakeem Jeffries is the first Black lawmaker to have been nominated for Speaker of the House |url=https://www.npr.org/2023/01/04/1146960921/hakeem-jeffries-is-the-first-black-lawmaker-nominated-for-speaker-of-the-house#:~:text=Hourly%20News-,Hakeem%20Jeffries%20is%20the%20first%20Black%20lawmaker%20nominated%20for%20Speaker,unanimous%20support%20from%20their%20caucus. |website=NPR |access-date=October 25, 2023 |date=January 4, 2023}}

• Hakeem Jeffries, incumbent leader of the House Democratic Caucus, and representative from New York's 8th district{{cite news |last=Martin |first=Jonathan |date=November 4, 2022 |title=How a secret meeting put Hakeem Jeffries on track to replace Pelosi |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/04/secret-meeting-hakeem-jeffries-pelosi-00065078 |access-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106011317/https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/04/secret-meeting-hakeem-jeffries-pelosi-00065078 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Grayer |first1=Annie |last2=Raju |first2=Manu |last3=Diaz |first3=Daneilla |date=November 11, 2022 |title=House Democrats quietly plot leadership plans while waiting for Nancy Pelosi's next move |work=CNN |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/11/politics/house-democrats-leadership-plans/index.html |access-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-date=December 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221229133609/https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/11/politics/house-democrats-leadership-plans/index.html/ |url-status=live }}

• Jim Clyburn, outgoing majority whip, former assistant Democratic leader, and representative from South Carolina's 6th district{{cite news |last=Lillis |first=Mike |date=November 17, 2022 |title=Hoyer won't seek House leadership, Clyburn eyeing run for No. 4 spot |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3740181-hoyer-to-step-out-of-leadership-role-clearing-way-for-jeffries/ |work=The Hill |access-date=November 18, 2022 |archive-date=November 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118001453/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3740181-hoyer-to-step-out-of-leadership-role-clearing-way-for-jeffries/ |url-status=live }}
• Steny Hoyer, outgoing House Majority Leader and representative from Maryland's 5th district
• Nancy Pelosi, outgoing speaker of the House, former minority leader, and representative from California's 12th district
• Adam Schiff, incumbent chair of the House Intelligence Committee, and representative from California's 28th district{{cite news |last1=Ferris |first1=Sarah |last2=Wu |first2=Nicholas |date=November 16, 2022 |title=Schiff passes on Dem leadership bid as Pelosi's future stays murky |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/16/schiff-dem-house-leadership-00067996 |work=Politico |access-date=November 18, 2022 |archive-date=November 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118022023/https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/16/schiff-dem-house-leadership-00067996 |url-status=live }}
• Pete Aguilar, incumbent vice chair of the Democratic caucus, and representative from California's 31st district
• Katherine Clark, incumbent assistant speaker, former vice chair of the Democratic caucus, and representative from Massachusetts's 5th district

On November 30, Jeffries was selected by acclamation.{{cite news |last=Mascaro |first=Lisa |date=November 30, 2022 |title=Jeffries wins historic bid to lead House Dems after Pelosi |url=https://apnews.com/article/nancy-pelosi-hakeem-jeffries-congress-government-and-politics-e6dee438b2cfd776b70ff29495072ab5 |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=Associated Press |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104173941/https://apnews.com/article/nancy-pelosi-hakeem-jeffries-congress-government-and-politics-e6dee438b2cfd776b70ff29495072ab5 |url-status=live }}

On November 15, 2022, in a secret ballot the House Republican Conference voted to retain Kevin McCarthy as its leader and nominee for the House speakership. However, McCarthy did not receive the votes of 218 members of the conference, the support needed to have a majority of all House members that would be in office at the start of the 118th Congress.{{cite web |last1=Choi |first1=Matthew |title=Kevin McCarthy elected House GOP leader over objections from Chip Roy, Michael Cloud and other hard-liners |url=https://www.texastribune.org/2022/11/15/chip-roy-speaker-house-republicans/ |website=The Texas Tribune |access-date=October 25, 2023 |language=en |date=November 15, 2022}}

As Republican Conference leader, McCarthy had been the Republican Conference's nominee for the speakership in both the 2019 and 2021 speaker elections in which Democratic majorities elected Nancy Pelosi as speaker.Multiple sources:

• {{cite web|title=House Republicans Pick Kevin McCarthy as Their Next Leader|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/14/us/politics/house-republican-leaders-kevin-mccarthy.html|website = The New York Times|date = November 14, 2018|access-date = November 16, 2018|last = Fandos|first = Nicholas}}
• {{cite web| url=https://www.congress.gov/116/crec/2019/01/03/CREC-2019-01-03.pdf| title=165 Cong. Rec. H2–4 (2019)| date=January 3, 2019| publisher=United States Government Publishing Office| location=Washington, D.C.| access-date=February 7, 2019}}
• {{cite web |last1=Mascaro|first1=Lisa|title=Trump ally McCarthy is reelected leader of House Republicans |url=https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-kevin-mccarthy-coronavirus-pandemic-db7b9836ca419ab1fed6857663be4736 |website=AP news |date=November 17, 2020 |publisher=Associated Press |access-date=2020-12-02}}
• {{cite news| last1=Rogers| first1=Alex| last2=Fox| first2=Lauren| last3=Main| first3=Alison| title=Nancy Pelosi reelected speaker Sunday despite narrower majority| date=January 3, 2020| url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/03/politics/nancy-pelosi-speaker-vote/index.html| publisher=CNN| access-date=January 4, 2021}}
• {{cite news| last1=Rogers| first1=Alex| last2=Fox| first2=Lauren| last3=Main| first3=Alison| title=Nancy Pelosi reelected speaker Sunday despite narrower majority| date=January 3, 2020| url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/03/politics/nancy-pelosi-speaker-vote/index.html| publisher=CNN| access-date=January 4, 2021}} However, McCarthy's first pursuit of the House speakership had been the October 2015 speaker election, which was held after John Boehner resigned under pressure from conservative hardliners and the Freedom Caucus,{{Cite web |last1=Bialik |first1=Carl |last2=Bycoffe |first2=Aaron |date=September 25, 2015 |title=The Hard-Line Republicans Who Pushed John Boehner Out |url=https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-hard-line-republicans-who-pushed-john-boehner-out/ |access-date=February 18, 2023 |website=FiveThirtyEight |language=en-US}} Kevin McCarthy sought the Republican nomination and was initially judged as the party's preferred candidate.{{cite magazine |last=Newton-Small |first=Jay |date=September 25, 2015 |title=Meet Kevin McCarthy: The Frontrunner to Replace John Boehner |url=https://time.com/4050341/john-boehner-speaker-kevin-mccarthy-house/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |magazine=Time |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103205901/https://time.com/4050341/john-boehner-speaker-kevin-mccarthy-house/ |url-status=live }} After the House Freedom Caucus refused to vote for McCarthy in a floor vote for the speakership, it became evident that McCarthy had not secured the support of a congressional majority that would be needed to elect him speaker.{{cite news|last=Temple-West|first=Michael|date=October 11, 2015|title=House Freedom Caucus would look 'favorably' on Ryan as speaker|url=https://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/jim-jordan-paul-ryan-house-speaker-214645|access-date=January 4, 2023|work=Politico |archive-date=January 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103223943/https://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/jim-jordan-paul-ryan-house-speaker-214645|url-status=live}}{{cite news |last=Shegreen |first=Deirdre |date=October 21, 2015 |title=Ryan wins Freedom Caucus majority, but not endorsement for Speaker |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/10/21/boehner-predicts-ryan-get-support-hes-seeking-become-speaker/74323092/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=USA Today |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103223111/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/10/21/boehner-predicts-ryan-get-support-hes-seeking-become-speaker/74323092/ |url-status=live }} As a result, McCarthy withdrew from the race, and Paul Ryan was elected speaker.{{cite news |last=Steinhauer |first=Jennifer |date=October 8, 2015 |title=Kevin McCarthy Drops Out of House Speaker Race |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/09/us/politics/house-speaker-vote.html |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=The New York Times |archive-date=December 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201206094732/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/09/us/politics/house-speaker-vote.html |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last=Steinhauer |first=Jennifer |date=October 29, 2015 |title=Paul Ryan Is Elected House Speaker, Hoping to Manage Chaos |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/30/us/politics/paul-ryan-set-to-take-over-as-speaker-hoping-to-manage-the-chaos.html |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=The New York Times |archive-date=November 8, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108210923/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/30/us/politics/paul-ryan-set-to-take-over-as-speaker-hoping-to-manage-the-chaos.html |url-status=live }} Ryan did not seek reelection to the House during the 2018 elections. After the elections, in which Republicans lost their House majority to the Democrats, the Republican Conference elected McCarthy to serve as their leader in the next congress.{{cite web |last1=Cheney |first1=Kyle |last2=Ferris |first2=Sarah |title=McCarthy hits hard at Dems after winning minority leader post |url=https://www.politico.com/story/2018/11/14/mccarthy-elected-house-gop-leader-for-next-congress-990743 |website=Politico |access-date=October 25, 2023 |language=en |date=November 14, 2018}}{{cite web |last1=Foran |first1=Clare Foran |last2=Killough |first2=Ashley |last3=Landers |first3=Elizabeth |title=Kevin McCarthy elected minority leader, will lead House Republicans after Paul Ryan's exit |url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/14/politics/house-republican-elections-leader/index.html |website=CNN |access-date=October 25, 2023 |language=en |date=November 14, 2018}} During the 116th Congress and 117th which followed, McCarthy was the House minority leader.

• Kevin McCarthy, former majority and minority leader, and representative from California's 23rd district{{cite news |last=Jones |first=Dustin |date=November 9, 2022 |title=Rep. Kevin McCarthy has announced his bid for House speaker |work=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/11/09/1135677974/republican-minority-leader-kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-2022-midterms |access-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-date=December 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221222082405/https://www.npr.org/2022/11/09/1135677974/republican-minority-leader-kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-2022-midterms |url-status=live }}

• Andy Biggs, former chair of the Freedom Caucus and representative from Arizona's 5th district{{cite news |last1=House |first1=Billy |last2=Wasson |first2=Erik |date=November 14, 2022 |title=McCarthy Gets GOP Challenge for US House Speaker From Arizona Conservative |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-14/mccarthy-gets-speakership-challenge-on-right-from-gop-s-biggs |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=Bloomberg News |archive-date=January 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230110091518/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-14/mccarthy-gets-speakership-challenge-on-right-from-gop-s-biggs |url-status=live }}

The House Republican Conference vote was held on November 15, 2022, and despite a challenge from Biggs, McCarthy won the majority of votes, becoming the Republican nominee for speaker of the House. As McCarthy won less than 218 votes, a majority of the seats in the House, the media started questioning his ability to be voted in as Speaker.{{cite news |last=Brooks |first=Emily |date=November 25, 2022 |title=Whip List: McCarthy searches for 218 GOP Speakership votes |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3748648-whip-list-mccarthy-searches-for-218-gop-speakership-votes/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=The Hill|archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103222929/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3748648-whip-list-mccarthy-searches-for-218-gop-speakership-votes/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last=Rakich |first=Nathaniel |date=December 9, 2022 |title=How Kevin McCarthy Could Lose The Election For Speaker Of The House |url=https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/house-speaker-kevin-mccarthy-votes/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |website=FiveThirtyEight |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103170846/https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/house-speaker-kevin-mccarthy-votes/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last=Rodgers |first=Alex |date=November 15, 2022 |title=Kevin McCarthy beats far-right challenger 188–31 to lead House GOP |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/15/politics/house-republican-vote-kevin-mccarthy/index.html |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=CNN |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106004630/https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/15/politics/house-republican-vote-kevin-mccarthy/index.html |url-status=live }}

{{hatnote|Note: All times are Eastern Standard Time (UTC–5).}}

The election for speaker began on January 3, 2023, at the start of the 118th Congress. At the time of the proceedings, there was one vacant seat, Virginia's 4th district.{{cite news |last=LeBlanc |first=Paul |date=December 12, 2022 |title=Youngkin schedules February special election in Virginia to fill Donald McEachin's seat |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/12/politics/virginia-special-election-donald-mceachin/index.html |access-date=January 3, 2023 |work=CNN |archive-date=December 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221220154606/https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/12/politics/virginia-special-election-donald-mceachin/index.html |url-status=live }}

File:Andy Biggs official portrait (cropped 1).jpg of Arizona was nominated on the first ballot as part of the right-wing opposition to Kevin McCarthy of California.]]

In anticipation of right-wing opposition to McCarthy's election as speaker, Don Bacon of Nebraska threatened to form a coalition of moderate Republicans who would work with the Democrats to successfully install a speaker.{{cite web |last=Griffing |first=Alex |title=Moderate Republican Doubles Down on Threat to Work With Democrats to Elect a House Speaker if GOP Rebels Tank McCarthy |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/moderate-republican-doubles-down-on-threat-to-work-with-democrats-to-elect-a-house-speaker-if-gop-rebels-tank-mccarthy/ar-AA15U3fw |access-date=January 3, 2023 |website=Mediaite |via=MSN |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103005221/https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/moderate-republican-doubles-down-on-threat-to-work-with-democrats-to-elect-a-house-speaker-if-gop-rebels-tank-mccarthy/ar-AA15U3fw |url-status=live }} Several names were floated as a potential compromise candidate, the most prominent of which was Fred Upton, a moderate Republican who had been the representative for Michigan's 6th congressional district up to his retirement in the 2022 election cycle.{{cite news |last1=Carney |first1=Jordain |last2=Moneymaker |first2=Anna |date=December 3, 2022 |title=With Kevin McCarthy's quest for the speaker's gavel in turbulent waters, lawmakers are publicly and privately floating alternatives |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/minutes/congress/12-2-2022/mccarthy-upton-speaker/ |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103223606/https://www.politico.com/minutes/congress/12-2-2022/mccarthy-upton-speaker/ |url-status=live }} McCarthy and his supporters spent December and the first days of January negotiating with right-wing opponents of McCarthy to persuade them to support him on the floor. At a closed-door meeting shortly before the speaker vote on January 3, Mike Rogers of Alabama threatened dissident Republicans with removal from House committees.{{cite news |last1=Ferris |first1=Sarah |last2=Beavers |first2=Olivia |last3=Carney |first3=Jordain |date=January 3, 2023 |title=Open revolt: McCarthy rejected a second time |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/03/mccarthy-speaker-house-vote-00076047 |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103095129/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/03/mccarthy-speaker-house-vote-00076047 |url-status=live }}

Prior to the vote, Politico reported that at least five Republican representatives had refused to support McCarthy, while another nine had not publicly commented on whether they would. As the Republican Party won a slim majority (222–212) and assuming Democratic members would not vote for him, McCarthy could only sustain as many as four Republican members voting for other candidates or nine Republican members either voting present or not voting at all, for McCarthy to be elected as speaker.{{cite web |date=January 2, 2023 |title=Gingrich: This could turn into chaos for Republicans |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1W7Qan48ysQ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |website=Fox News |via=YouTube |archive-date=January 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230110091540/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1W7Qan48ysQ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Beavers |first1=Olivia |last2=Carney |first2=Jordain |date=January 2, 2023 |title=Conservatives threaten to withhold critical McCarthy support, hours before speaker vote |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/02/conservatives-kevin-mccarthy-speaker-vote-00076026 |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-date=January 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230102234324/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/02/conservatives-kevin-mccarthy-speaker-vote-00076026 |url-status=live }} Bob Good of Virginia said that McCarthy "has not done anything to earn my vote", explaining that "[t]here's many times where we ... asked him to fight on various opportunities and various issues, and I have not seen the demonstrated fight that we're looking for."{{cite news |last1=Beavers |first1=Olivia |last2=Carney |first2=Jordain |date=November 10, 2022 |title=House Freedom Caucus ties itself in knots over challenging McCarthy |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/10/mccarthy-freedom-caucus-midterms-00066149 |access-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-date=December 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221219220749/https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/10/mccarthy-freedom-caucus-midterms-00066149 |url-status=live }} The Club for Growth, a conservative political advocacy group, openly called for House Republicans to oppose his nomination.{{cite web |last=Solender |first=Andrew |date=December 9, 2022 |title=Right-wing demand list further complicates McCarthy's speaker bid |url=https://www.axios.com/2022/12/09/right-wing-demand-list-further-complicates-mccarthys-speaker-bid |access-date=January 3, 2023 |website=Axios |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103005221/https://www.axios.com/2022/12/09/right-wing-demand-list-further-complicates-mccarthys-speaker-bid |url-status=live }}

It was reported that these representatives demanded that McCarthy make concessions before they would support him, such as lowering the barriers for caucus members to force a vote to remove a sitting speaker and other procedural matters.{{cite news |last1=Ferris |first1=Sarah |last2=Beavers |first2=Olivia |title=McCarthy relents on key conservative demand — but uncertainty remains over speaker bid |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/01/kevin-mccarthy-speaker-vote-00076002 |access-date=January 3, 2023 |work=Politico |archive-date=January 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230102231640/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/01/kevin-mccarthy-speaker-vote-00076002 |url-status=live }} Chip Roy of Texas became a leader in the negotiation process for the holdouts to McCarthy's speakership nomination. The goals that Roy and a group of about 20 Republicans included to bring down the threshold for calling a vote of no confidence against the speaker to one member, more enforcement to allow more time to read bills, a greater role for the House Freedom Caucus in Republican leadership, requiring Republican leadership to refrain from being involved in primary elections,{{cite news|last=Choi|first=Matthew|date=January 5, 2023|url=https://www.texastribune.org/2023/01/05/chip-roy-kevin-mccarthy-speaker/|title=Chip Roy, key McCarthy opponent, steps up as top negotiator in House speaker standoff|work=Texas Tribune|access-date=January 9, 2023|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106034039/https://www.texastribune.org/2023/01/05/chip-roy-kevin-mccarthy-speaker/|url-status=live}} and an end to U.S. aid to Ukraine.{{cite news|last=Hooks|first=Christopher|date=January 5, 2023|url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/chip-roy-encyclopedia/|title=Chip Roy, Bless His Heart|work=Texas Monthly|access-date=January 9, 2023|archive-date=January 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108020446/https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/chip-roy-encyclopedia/|url-status=live}}

The following individuals received at least one vote in the election for speaker or expressed interest in serving in the role.

• Hakeem Jeffries of New York
• Kevin McCarthy of California
• Andy Biggs of Arizona
• Jim Jordan of Ohio
• Kevin Hern of Oklahoma
• Byron Donalds of Florida
• Donald Trump of Florida
• Justin Amash of Michigan{{Cite web |date=2022-11-16 |title=Justin Amash offers to serve as 'nonpartisan' Speaker |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3738011-justin-amash-offers-to-serve-as-nonpartisan-speaker/ |access-date=2023-06-14 |website=The Hill |language=en-US}}
• Fred Upton of Michigan{{Cite web |last=MLive |first=Julie Mack {{!}} special to |date=2023-01-04 |title=Fred Upton on potential House Speaker bid: 'Intriguing proposal' |url=https://mlive.com/politics/2023/01/fred-upton-on-potential-house-speaker-bid-intriguing-proposal.html |access-date=2023-06-14 |website=mlive |language=en}}
• Jim Banks of Indiana
• Lee Zeldin of New York

On the first through the fourteenth votes, McCarthy failed to receive a majority of votes cast,{{cite news |date=January 3, 2023 |title=House Adjourns Without a Speaker |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/03/us/house-speaker-vote |access-date=January 3, 2023 |work=The New York Times |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103161421/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/03/us/house-speaker-vote |url-status=live }} while Jeffries received the support of all Democrats present on each ballot.{{cite news|last1=Wilkie|first1=Christina|last2=Cox|first2=Chelsey|last3=Kopecki|first3=Dawn|date=January 6, 2023|title=GOP leader McCarthy elected House Speaker on 15th vote in historic run|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/06/live-updates-on-house-speaker-vote-gop-leader-mccarthy-fights-for-his-political-future-in-historic-battle-for-the-gavel.html|access-date=January 7, 2023|work=CNBC|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106235348/https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/06/live-updates-on-house-speaker-vote-gop-leader-mccarthy-fights-for-his-political-future-in-historic-battle-for-the-gavel.html|url-status=live}} Jim Jordan of Ohio received all votes of Republicans opposed to McCarthy on the second and third rounds.{{cite news |last1=Wagner |first1=John |display-authors=et al |date=January 3, 2023 |title=McCarthy fails to win House speakership on third ballot |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/03/speaker-house-vote-mccarthy-new-congress/ |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103122912/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/03/speaker-house-vote-mccarthy-new-congress/ |url-status=live }} Following three unsuccessful votes on January 3, the House adjourned until noon on January 4.{{cite news|last1=Hammond|first1=Elise|last2=SangaL|first2=Aditi|last3=Chowdhury|first3=Maureen|last4=Powell|first4=Tori B.|date=January 3, 2023|title=The latest on the new Congress and House speaker vote|url=https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/new-congress-sworn-in-2023/index.html|access-date=January 3, 2023|work=CNN|archive-date=January 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103132610/https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/new-congress-sworn-in-2023/index.html|url-status=live}} During the fourth vote, Roy nominated Byron Donalds of Florida, who replaced Jordan as the Republican alternative to McCarthy.{{cite magazine |last=Segers |first=Grace |date=January 5, 2023 |title=No Speaker, No Rules, No End in Sight: Inside the House's Descent Into Purgatory |magazine=The New Republic |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/169853/house-idle-mccarthy-loses-votes |access-date=January 7, 2023 |issn=0028-6583 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106152659/https://newrepublic.com/article/169853/house-idle-mccarthy-loses-votes |url-status=live }} In the fourth ballot until the eleventh ballot, Victoria Spartz of Indiana voted present, lowering the necessary threshold to 217 votes.{{cite news |last1=Wagner |first1=John |last2=Alfaro |first2=Mariana |date=January 4, 2023 |title=McCarthy loses 4th House speaker vote as GOP standoff continues |newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/04/house-speaker-vote-live-updates-kevin-mccarthy/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104123501/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/04/house-speaker-vote-live-updates-kevin-mccarthy/ |url-status=live }}

Following three more unsuccessful ballots on January 4, the House again adjourned until 8 pm the same day, then voted to adjourn again until noon on January 5.{{cite news|last1=Sangal|first1=Aditi|last2=Vogt|first2=Adrienne|last3=Hayes|first3=Mike|last4=Chowdhury|first4=Maureen|last5=Hammond|first5=Elise|date=January 4, 2023|title=GOP deadlocked over House speaker vote|url=https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/house-speaker-leadership-vote-1-4-23/index.html|access-date=January 4, 2023|work=CNN|archive-date=January 4, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104144919/https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/house-speaker-leadership-vote-1-4-23/index.html|url-status=live}} The House reconvened on January 5, and from the seventh to the eleventh ballots no candidate achieved a majority of the vote, making this the longest speaker election since that of December 1859 – February 1860.{{cite web |date=January 5, 2023 |title=This has officially been the longest fight for House speaker since before the Civil War |url=https://www.semafor.com/article/01/05/2023/this-has-now-been-the-longest-fight-for-house-speaker-since-before-the-civil-war |access-date=January 7, 2023 |website=Semafor |archive-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107125723/https://www.semafor.com/article/01/05/2023/this-has-now-been-the-longest-fight-for-house-speaker-since-before-the-civil-war |url-status=live }} After initially voting to adjourn the proceedings until the following Monday, seconds before the voting to adjourn closed, McCarthy and his allies reversed their votes, which brought about a fifteenth ballot.{{cite news|last1=Goodwin|first1=Liz|last2=Sotomayor|first2=Marianna|last3=Alemany|first3=Jacqueline|last4=Wang|first4=Amy B.|last5=Wells|first5=Dylan|date=January 6, 2023|title=Kevin McCarthy elected House Speaker, breaking historic deadlock|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/06/house-speaker-votes-mccarthy-adjourn/|access-date=January 7, 2023|issn=0190-8286|archive-date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107004532/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/06/house-speaker-votes-mccarthy-adjourn/|url-status=live}} On this fifteenth and final ballot, McCarthy received 50.5% of the votes cast for a candidate by name, as all four members-elect who had voted for other candidates on the fourteenth ballot voted present instead. McCarthy was elected speaker, and the early morning of January 7 marked the end of one of the highest number of ballots needed to elect a House Speaker in U.S. history.{{cite news|url=https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-house-of-representatives-kevin-mccarthy-us-republican-party-0938c7358f41c83759246f8949ac7c15|title=McCarthy elected House speaker in rowdy post-midnight vote|last1=Mascaro|first1=Lisa|last2=Amiri|first2=Farnoush|work=Associated Press|date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107135727/https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-house-of-representatives-kevin-mccarthy-us-republican-party-0938c7358f41c83759246f8949ac7c15|archive-date=January 7, 2023|access-date=January 8, 2023}}{{cite news|url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/07/mccarthy-claims-speakership-on-15th-ballot-00076882|title=McCarthy claims speakership on 15th ballot

|last1=Adragna|first1=Anthony|last2=Wu|first2=Nicholas|last3=Hill|first3=Meredith Lee|last4=LeVine|first4=Marianne|work=Politico|date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107155845/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/07/mccarthy-claims-speakership-on-15th-ballot-00076882|archive-date=January 7, 2023|access-date=January 8, 2023}}

In each round, Jeffries's received the unanimous vote of every present Democrat. This marked the first speakership balloting since 2009 in which Democratic members voted unanimously for the House Democratic Caucuses' nominee.{{cite web |last1=Kamisar |first1=Ben |last2=Tablot |first2=Haley |last3=Todd |first3=Chuck |title=McCarthy short on first speaker ballot but Jeffries consolidates Dems |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/meetthepressblog/mccarthy-falls-short-first-ballot-speaker-jeffries-consolidates-democr-rcna64100 |website=NBC News |access-date=October 25, 2023 |language=en |date=January 3, 2023}}

{{Wikinews|118th United States Congress convenes; House of Representatives adjourns without electing Speaker for first time in 100 years}}

On the first ballot, Elise Stefanik of New York gave a nominating speech for McCarthy, Pete Aguilar of California nominated Jeffries, and Paul Gosar of Arizona nominated Andy Biggs.{{cite news |last1=Watson |first1=Kathryn |last2=Linton |first2=Caroline |date=January 3, 2023 |title=House adjourns without electing speaker after McCarthy fails to win in three rounds of voting |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/house-speaker-race-vote-kevin-mccarthy-watch-live-stream-today-2022-01-03/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=CBS News |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104100829/https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/house-speaker-race-vote-kevin-mccarthy-watch-live-stream-today-2022-01-03/ |url-status=live }} In total, 19 Republicans voted for candidates other than McCarthy, while Jeffries received the most votes of any candidate with all Democrats present voting in his favor.{{cite news |last=Schnell |first=Mychael |date=January 3, 2023 |title=Here are the 20 GOP lawmakers who voted against McCarthy for Speaker |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3796872-here-are-the-19-gop-lawmakers-who-voted-against-mccarthy-for-speaker/ |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=The Hill |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106194246/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3796872-here-are-the-19-gop-lawmakers-who-voted-against-mccarthy-for-speaker/ |url-status=live }} Since no nominee received an outright majority of the vote, a second ballot took place for the first time since the December 1923 U.S. speaker election.{{cite news |last=Edmondson |first=Catie |date=January 3, 2023 |title=Live Updates: McCarthy Fails in First Vote on Speaker |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/03/us/house-speaker-vote |access-date=January 3, 2023 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103161421/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/03/us/house-speaker-vote |url-status=live }}

On the second ballot, Jordan nominated McCarthy, Aguilar again nominated Jeffries, and Matt Gaetz of Florida nominated Jordan. The same 19 Republicans voted against McCarthy, this time coalescing their votes around Jordan. No candidate received an outright majority of the vote.{{cite news |last=Brooks |first=Emily |date=January 3, 2023 |title=McCarthy blocked from Speakership as House moves to second ballot |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/3796728-mccarthy-blocked-from-speakership-as-house-moves-to-second-ballot/ |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=The Hill |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103223940/https://thehill.com/homenews/3796728-mccarthy-blocked-from-speakership-as-house-moves-to-second-ballot/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last=Treene |first=Alayna |date=January 3, 2023 |title=19 Republicans vote against McCarthy on second House speaker ballot |url=https://www.axios.com/2023/01/03/kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-second-ballot |access-date=January 3, 2023 |website=Axios |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103202252/https://www.axios.com/2023/01/03/kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-second-ballot |url-status=live }}

File:Jim Jordan official photo, 114th Congress (cropped).jpg of Ohio was nominated on the second and third ballots as anti-McCarthy Republicans coalesced their votes around him. He never voted for himself.]]

On the third ballot, Steve Scalise of Louisiana nominated McCarthy, Aguilar again nominated Jeffries, and Roy nominated Jordan. Jordan again voted for McCarthy, not for himself. Byron Donalds of Florida, who had voted for McCarthy on the first two ballots, instead voted for Jordan, increasing Jordan's vote total to 20.{{cite news |last=Collins |first=Eliza |date=January 3, 2023 |title=A McCarthy Supporter Switches to Jordan During Third Vote |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-vote-santos/card/mccarthy-loses-a-supporter-during-third-vote-615gZREDxeOk9XHGL54q |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103214301/https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-vote-santos/card/mccarthy-loses-a-supporter-during-third-vote-615gZREDxeOk9XHGL54q |url-status=live }} Donalds wrote on Twitter about his decision to change his vote, stating that "the reality is Rep. Kevin McCarthy doesn't have the votes."{{cite news |last=Fung |first=Katherine |date=January 3, 2023 |title=Byron Donalds Shares Why He Flipped Vote Against Kevin McCarthy |url=https://www.newsweek.com/byron-donalds-explains-why-he-flipped-vote-against-kevin-mccarthy-speaker-house-1771060 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103231234/https://www.newsweek.com/byron-donalds-explains-why-he-flipped-vote-against-kevin-mccarthy-speaker-house-1771060 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=Newsweek}}

After the third ballot, Tom Cole of Oklahoma moved to adjourn the meeting until 12:00 p.m. on January 4, and the motion was approved by voice vote.{{cite news |date=January 3, 2023 |title=House Speaker Election Coverage: House adjourns after McCarthy suffers defeat on third ballot |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3796286-live-coverage-house-set-to-vote-for-next-speaker/ |access-date=January 3, 2023 |work=The Hill |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103150546/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3796286-live-coverage-house-set-to-vote-for-next-speaker/ |url-status=live }}

Ahead of the fourth ballot of voting on January 4, former president Donald Trump reaffirmed his support for McCarthy to be speaker of the House and urged all House Republicans to vote for him.{{cite news |last=Hooper |first=Kelly |date=January 4, 2023 |title=Trump endorses McCarthy after three failed speaker votes |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/04/trump-endorses-mccarthy-speaker-house-00076298 |access-date=January 4, 2023 |work=Politico |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104142044/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/04/trump-endorses-mccarthy-speaker-house-00076298 |url-status=live }} Kat Cammack of Florida described those who did not vote for McCarthy as "the radical 2 percent".{{cite web |last=Jacobs |first=Ben |date=January 3, 2023 |title=Kevin McCarthy's once-in-a-century House speakership failure |url=https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2023/1/3/23537373/kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-vote |access-date=January 7, 2023 |website=Vox |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106230919/https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2023/1/3/23537373/kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-vote |url-status=live }}{{cite magazine |last=Segers |first=Grace |last9=Otten |first9=Tori |date=January 3, 2023 |title=Kevin McCarthy Has Lost Control of the House GOP |magazine=The New Republic |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/169789/kevin-mccarthy-speaker-vote-lost |access-date=January 7, 2023 |issn=0028-6583 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106053517/https://newrepublic.com/article/169789/kevin-mccarthy-speaker-vote-lost |url-status=live }} Ralph Norman of South Carolina, one of the Republicans opposed to McCarthy, stated that McCarthy would win over additional votes from the Republican holdouts by committing to shutting down the U.S. government over raising the United States debt ceiling.{{cite news |last1=Grim |first1=Ryan |title=Kevin McCarthy Must Commit to Government Shutdown Over Raising Debt Ceiling, Says Freedom Caucus Holdout |url=https://theintercept.com/2023/01/04/kevin-mccarthy-government-shutdown-debt-ceiling/ |work=The Intercept |access-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105152503/https://theintercept.com/2023/01/04/kevin-mccarthy-government-shutdown-debt-ceiling/ |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |date=January 4, 2023 |url-status=live}}

File:Victoria Spartz 117th U.S Congress.jpg of Indiana voted present on the fourth through eleventh ballot, switching her vote from McCarthy.]]

After a quorum call, Wisconsin Republican Mike Gallagher nominated McCarthy, Aguilar again nominated Jeffries, and Roy nominated Byron Donalds. Despite Trump's endorsement,{{cite news |last=Sheerin |first=Jude |date=January 5, 2023 |title=McCarthy loses historic 11th vote for House Speaker |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-us-canada-64153397 |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=BBC News |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105210140/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-us-canada-64153397 |url-status=live }} the 20 members who had voted for Jordan in the third ballot again opposed McCarthy, voting in this round for Donalds.{{cite news |last=Schnell |first=Mychael |date=January 4, 2023 |title=These 21 Republicans did not support McCarthy on Day 2 of the Speaker's vote |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3798727-these-21-republicans-did-not-support-mccarthy-on-day-2-of-the-speakers-vote/ |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=The Hill |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105084245/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3798727-these-21-republicans-did-not-support-mccarthy-on-day-2-of-the-speakers-vote/ |url-status=live }} Victoria Spartz, who had voted for McCarthy on each previous ballot, voted present. Spartz explained her vote of present as a message that more deliberations are needed.{{cite news|url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3799034-rep-spartz-explains-reasoning-behind-present-vote-for-speaker/|title=Rep. Spartz explains reasoning behind 'present' vote for Speaker|date=January 4, 2023|last=Shapero|first=Julia|work=The Hill|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=January 4, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104231346/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3799034-rep-spartz-explains-reasoning-behind-present-vote-for-speaker/|url-status=live}}

On the fifth ballot, Warren Davidson of Ohio nominated McCarthy, Aguilar again nominated Jeffries, and Lauren Boebert of Colorado nominated Donalds. All members voted for the same candidates on the fifth ballot as they did on the fourth.{{cite news |last1=Hutzler |first1=Alexandra |last2=Cathey |first2=Libby |last3=Axelrod |first3=Tal |last4=Oppenheim |first4=Oren |date=January 4, 2023 |title=New Congress live updates: McCarthy suffers 5th defeat as speaker standoff now in 2nd day |work=ABC News |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/live-updates/new-congress-live-updates/?id=95854349 |access-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104000619/https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/live-updates/new-congress-live-updates/?id=95854349 |url-status=live }}

On the sixth ballot, Cammack nominated McCarthy, Aguilar again nominated Jeffries, and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania nominated Donalds. Prior to the ballot, Ken Buck of Colorado suggested to CNN that McCarthy should withdraw from consideration for Speaker if he could not reach a majority; he nonetheless voted again for McCarthy.{{cite news|url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3798831-gop-rep-ken-buck-says-mccarthy-should-consider-stepping-aside/|title=GOP Rep. Ken Buck says McCarthy should consider stepping aside|work=The Hill|last1=Mueller|first1=Julia|date=January 4, 2023|access-date=January 4, 2023|archive-date=January 4, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104201332/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3798831-gop-rep-ken-buck-says-mccarthy-should-consider-stepping-aside/|url-status=live}} All members voted for the same candidates on the sixth ballot as they did on the fourth and fifth.

File:Steve Scalise 116th Congress official photo.jpg of Louisiana was seen as a possible alternative to McCarthy.]]

The House agreed to adjourn until 8:00 p.m. the same day by voice vote. After reconvening at 8:00, the House agreed to adjourn again until 12:00 p.m. the next day, January 5,{{cite news |date=January 5, 2023 |title=House Speaker election coverage: Chamber narrowly votes to adjourn for day |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3798091-house-speaker-election-coverage-mccarthy-seeks-path-to-victory-on-day-2/ |access-date=January 5, 2023 |work=The Hill |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105013341/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3798091-house-speaker-election-coverage-mccarthy-seeks-path-to-victory-on-day-2/ |url-status=live }} by a vote of 216–214.{{cite web|date=January 4, 2023|title=Final Vote for Roll Call 8|url=https://clerk.house.gov/evs/2023/roll008.xml|url-status=live|publisher=Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105161518/https://clerk.house.gov/evs/2023/roll008.xml|archive-date=January 5, 2023|access-date=January 5, 2023}} Of those who voted against adjournment, 210 were Democrats and four were Republicans: Biggs, Boebert, Gaetz, and Eli Crane of Arizona.{{cite news |last1=House |first1=Billy |last2=Wasson |first2=Erik |title=House Adjourns as Deal on McCarthy Speaker Bid Remains Elusive |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-05/mccarthy-doesn-t-want-another-speaker-vote-wednesday-night |work=Bloomberg News |access-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105025214/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-05/mccarthy-doesn-t-want-another-speaker-vote-wednesday-night |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |date=January 4, 2023 |url-status=live}} Following the sixth ballot, Politico reported that Donalds was unlikely to be the final choice of the anti-McCarthy Republicans, with the chair of the Republican Study Committee, Kevin Hern of Oklahoma, being floated as a potential candidate.{{cite news|url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/04/gop-debates-who-could-take-mccarthys-place-00076463|title=GOP debates: Who could take McCarthy's place?|work=Politico|last1=Carney|first1=Jordain|last2=Ferris|first2=Sarah|last3=Beavers|first3=Olivia|date=January 4, 2023|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=January 5, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105010934/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/04/gop-debates-who-could-take-mccarthys-place-00076463|url-status=live}} Pete Sessions of Texas also suggested that Republicans should begin to consider other speaker candidates,{{cite news|url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/05/mccarthy-bid-00076520|title=GOP stalemates on speaker vote despite McCarthy's proposed deal|work=Politico|last1=Beavers|first1=Olivia|last2=Ferris|first2=Sarah|last3=Bade|first3=Rachael|last4=Carney|first4=Jordain|date=January 5, 2023|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=January 5, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105134248/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/05/mccarthy-bid-00076520|url-status=live}} with Scalise, the House Majority Leader-elect, being specifically named.{{cite news|last=Blake|first=Aaron|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/03/house-speaker-candidates/|title=Here's who could become House Speaker if Kevin McCarthy isn't elected|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=January 5, 2023|date=January 4, 2023|archive-date=January 5, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105014454/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/03/house-speaker-candidates/|url-status=live}}

Ahead of a seventh vote on the speakership, McCarthy offered several concessions, including allowing a single party member to motion for a vote to remove the speaker, appointing additional Freedom Caucus members to the House Rules Committee, and holding votes on bills concerning congressional term limits in the United States and border security.{{cite news |last1=Foran |first1=Clare |last2=Zanona |first2=Melanie |last3=Raju |first3=Manu |last4=Fox |first4=Lauren |author3-link=Manu Raju |date=January 4, 2023|title=First on CNN: McCarthy proposes key concessions after House adjourns for second day without electing a speaker |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/04/politics/kevin-mccarthy-speaker-vote/index.html |work=CNN |access-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105060027/https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/04/politics/kevin-mccarthy-speaker-vote/index.html |archive-date=January 5, 2023|url-status=live}} At the same time, the Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC aligned with McCarthy, reached an agreement with the Club for Growth not to spend money in the primary election of Republicans in open districts that are considered safe seats for the party.{{cite news |last1=Weaver |first1=Al |title=McCarthy-backed PAC agrees to not spend in safe GOP open-seat primaries in Speakership concession |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3799420-mccarthy-backed-pac-agrees-to-less-spending-open-rules-in-exchange-for-speakership-backing/ |work=The Hill |access-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105051441/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3799420-mccarthy-backed-pac-agrees-to-less-spending-open-rules-in-exchange-for-speakership-backing/ |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |date=January 4, 2023 |url-status=live}}

File:Rep. Byron Donalds - 117th Congress.jpg of Florida was among those Republicans who were not nominated but received at least a vote on the first ballot; he was officially nominated from the fourth ballot and received at least a vote until the eleventh ballot.]]

On the seventh ballot, John James of Michigan nominated McCarthy, Aguilar again nominated Jeffries, and Dan Bishop of North Carolina nominated Donalds. Gaetz, who had voted for Donalds on the fourth, fifth, and sixth ballots, instead voted for Trump. All other members voted for the same candidates as they did on the fourth, fifth, and sixth ballots.{{cite news|url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/05/mccarthy-bid-00076520|title=McCarthy heads to 7th vote with fate still murky|last1=Beavers|first1=Olivia|last2=Ferris|first2=Sarah|last3=Bade|first3=Rachael|work=Politico|date=January 5, 2022|access-date=January 8, 2023|archive-date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107212823/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/05/mccarthy-bid-00076520|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last1=Sangal|first1=Aditi|last2=Vogt|first2=Adrienne|last3=Hayes|first3=Mike|last4=Chowdhury|first4=Maureen|last5=Hammond|first5=Elise|date=January 5, 2023|title=GOP deadlocked over House speaker vote|url=https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/house-speaker-leadership-vote-01-05-23/index.html|access-date=January 5, 2023|work=CNN|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105180150/https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/house-speaker-leadership-vote-01-05-23/index.html|archive-date=January 5, 2023|url-status=live}}

On the eighth ballot, Brian Mast of Florida nominated McCarthy, Katherine Clark of Massachusetts nominated Jeffries, and Biggs nominated Donalds. Boebert, as well as Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma, who had both previously supported Donalds, cast their votes for Hern, who was not formally nominated. All other members voted for the same candidates as they did on the seventh ballot.{{cite news |last1=Wagner |first1=John |last2=Alfaro |first2=Mariana |last3=Paybarah |first3=Azi |last4=Wang |first4=Amy B. |last5=Scott |first5=Eugene |date=January 5, 2023 |title=House moves to an 8th speaker ballot after McCarthy falls short again |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/05/house-speaker-vote-live-updates-kevin-mccarthy/ |access-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105122412/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/05/house-speaker-vote-live-updates-kevin-mccarthy/ |url-status=live }}

On the ninth ballot, Troy Nehls of Texas nominated McCarthy, Ted Lieu of California nominated Jeffries, Matt Rosendale of Montana nominated Donalds, and Boebert nominated Hern.{{cite web|date=January 5, 2023|title=Reps.-elect McCarthy, Jeffries, Donalds, and Hern Nominated for Speaker on the Ninth Ballot|publisher=C-SPAN|url=https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5049621%2Freps-elect-mccarthy-jeffries-donalds-hern-nominated-speaker-ninth-ballot|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=January 5, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105210806/https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5049621%2Freps-elect-mccarthy-jeffries-donalds-hern-nominated-speaker-ninth-ballot|url-status=live}} All members voted for the same candidates as they did on the eighth ballot, except Gaetz, who voted for Hern instead of Trump.{{cite news |last=Chasmer |first=Jessica |title=McCarthy set to lose 9th speaker vote, as Donalds and Hern split GOP votes |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/mccarthy-set-lose-9th-speaker-vote-donalds-hern-split-gop-votes |access-date=January 5, 2023 |work=Fox News |date=January 5, 2023 |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105210206/https://www.foxnews.com/politics/mccarthy-set-lose-9th-speaker-vote-donalds-hern-split-gop-votes |url-status=live }} Buck, who had been a McCarthy supporter, was absent from the vote and subsequent votes due to travel for a planned non-emergency medical procedure in Colorado.{{cite news |last1=Beavers |first1=Olivia |last2=Ferris |first2=Sarah |last3=Carney |first3=Jordain |last4=Bade |first4=Rachael |author-link4=Rachael Bade |date=January 5, 2023 |title=McCarthy fails on 11th ballot amid hopes for tentative deal with conservatives |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/05/mccarthy-bid-00076520 |access-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106002042/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/05/mccarthy-bid-00076520 |url-status=live }}

On the tenth ballot, Juan Ciscomani of Arizona nominated McCarthy,{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/05/us/house-speaker-vote/6ee2ce2d-ccc6-55b2-a08e-a4d8a9cdc7bf|title=House Speaker Vote: Updates|work=The New York Times|date=January 5, 2023|access-date=January 5, 2023|last=Edmondson|first=Catie|archive-date=January 5, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105220900/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/05/us/house-speaker-vote/6ee2ce2d-ccc6-55b2-a08e-a4d8a9cdc7bf|url-status=live}} Aguilar again nominated Jeffries, Anna Paulina Luna of Florida nominated Donalds,{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/house-speaker-leadership-vote-01-05-23/h_90c92fd5d24df25b83b56b56ffaf8914|title=In addition to McCarthy, these 3 lawmakers were nominated for House speaker|date=January 5, 2023|work=CNN|access-date=January 5, 2023|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106000408/https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/house-speaker-leadership-vote-01-05-23/h_90c92fd5d24df25b83b56b56ffaf8914|url-status=live}} and Boebert again nominated Hern.{{cite news |last=Astor |first=Maggie |date=January 5, 2023 |title=Who is Kevin Hern? More about one of the rebels' protest candidates |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/05/us/politics/kevin-hern-speaker-boebert.html |access-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105223136/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/05/us/politics/kevin-hern-speaker-boebert.html |url-status=live }} Donalds continued as the main Republican opposition to McCarthy,{{cite news |date=January 5, 2023 |title=House Speaker election coverage: House moves directly into eighth vote after McCarthy loses seventh |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3800187-house-speaker-election-coverage-mccarthy-negotiates-day-3-of-voting/ |work=The Hill |access-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-date=January 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230105141009/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3800187-house-speaker-election-coverage-mccarthy-negotiates-day-3-of-voting/ |url-status=live }} while Hern was nominated for the ninth, tenth, and eleventh ballots, receiving as many as seven votes.

On the eleventh ballot, French Hill of Arkansas nominated McCarthy,{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/05/us/house-speaker-vote/f22878bb-d989-5fcd-a8b1-a1e3576c73e3?smid=url-share|title=House Speaker Vote: Updates|work=The New York Times|date=January 5, 2023|access-date=January 5, 2023|last=Gold|first=Michael|quote=We'd heard chatter that there would be a motion to adjourn coming up, but French Hill of Arkansas just stood up to nominate Kevin McCarthy.|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106004829/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/05/us/house-speaker-vote/f22878bb-d989-5fcd-a8b1-a1e3576c73e3?smid=url-share|url-status=live}} Joe Neguse of Colorado nominated Jeffries, Gaetz nominated Trump,{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/05/us/house-speaker-vote/2e9c0c3e-d437-51d3-9506-bb6d912af981?smid=url-share|title=House Speaker Vote: Updates|work=The New York Times|date=January 5, 2023|access-date=January 5, 2023|last=Gold|first=Michael|quote=It was Democrat Joe Neguse's turn to nominate Hakeem Jeffries, and he brought up the Jan. 6, 2021 attack by former President Donald Trump's supporters on the Capitol, a day before its anniversary. Matt Gaetz immediately followed and nominated Trump, lauding the former president's achievements.|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106004826/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/05/us/house-speaker-vote/2e9c0c3e-d437-51d3-9506-bb6d912af981?smid=url-share|url-status=live}} and Good nominated Hern.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/05/us/house-speaker-vote/962ef576-2135-5005-9afa-3eb201bd2b08?smid=url-share|title=House Speaker Vote: Updates|work=The New York Times|date=January 5, 2023|access-date=January 5, 2023|last=Gold|first=Michael|quote=As we enter the 11th ballot, we're not done with speaker nominations yet. Bob Good of Virginia, after a long wind-up speech, is putting forward Kevin Hern as a candidate.|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106004825/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/05/us/house-speaker-vote/962ef576-2135-5005-9afa-3eb201bd2b08?smid=url-share|url-status=live}} Once again, Donalds was the 3rd leading vote getter. After the ballot, the House voted 219−213 to adjourn until 12:00 p.m. on January 6.{{cite news|last1=Sangal|first1=Aditi|last2=Vogt|first2=Adrienne|last3=Hayes|first3=Mike|last4=Chowdhury|first4=Maureen|last5=Hammond|first5=Elise|date=January 5, 2023|title=The House has voted to adjourn until Friday|url=https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/house-speaker-leadership-vote-01-05-23/h_69b095c1303b5fee218e77dd4bb36ce6|work=CNN|access-date=January 6, 2023|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106011718/https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/house-speaker-leadership-vote-01-05-23/h_69b095c1303b5fee218e77dd4bb36ce6|url-status=live}} Tim Burchett of Tennessee joined all Democrats in voting against adjournment.{{cite news|last1=Axelrod|first1=Tal|last2=Cathey|first2=Libby|last3=Hutzler|first3=Alexandra|last4=Siegel|first4=Benjamin|last5=Oppenheim|first5=Oren|date=January 5, 2023|title=House adjourns after 3 days of failed votes|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/live-updates/new-congress-live-updates/?id=95854349|access-date=January 6, 2023|work=ABC News|quote=House Republicans successfully, though narrowly, voted on Thursday night to adjourn until noon on Friday following another day of unsuccessfully trying to choose a speaker.|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106000343/https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/live-updates/new-congress-live-updates/?id=95854349|url-status=live}} McCarthy continued to negotiate with the Republican hardliners with further concessions, including seats on influential committees (such as the Rules Committee) and lowering the threshold to a single House member for triggering a vote on whether to unseat the speaker.

When the House reconvened on January 6,{{efn|name="15th ballot"}} Mike Garcia of California nominated McCarthy for the twelfth ballot. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina nominated Jeffries, Gaetz nominated Jordan, and Boebert again nominated Hern. On the twelfth ballot, 14 Republicans who had previously opposed McCarthy voted for him, while seven others voted for Jordan or Hern. Buck, David Trone of Maryland,{{cite news |last=Shabad |first=Rebecca |date=January 6, 2023 |title=House speaker live updates: McCarthy bid heads into the fourth day: House Democrat skips votes due to surgery |work=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/live-blog/house-speaker-vote-mccarthy-fourth-day-live-updates-rcna64549#rcrd9750 |access-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106141534/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/live-blog/house-speaker-vote-mccarthy-fourth-day-live-updates-rcna64549#rcrd9750 |url-status=live }} and Wesley Hunt of Texas were absent. Buck and Trone were absent due to scheduled medical procedures; Hunt returned to Texas because his wife was in a hospital following the premature birth of their son.{{cite news |last=Sforza |first=Lauren |date=January 6, 2023 |title=Incoming Texas Republican returning to Texas after son born prematurely |work=The Hill |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3802485-incoming-texas-republican-returning-to-texas-after-son-born-prematurely/ |access-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106180245/https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3802485-incoming-texas-republican-returning-to-texas-after-son-born-prematurely/ |url-status=live }} This ballot marked the first time McCarthy won a plurality of the votes, after receiving votes from 14 Republicans who had previously opposed his nomination; he nonetheless fell short of a majority.{{cite news|last1=Karni|first1=Annie|last2=Edmondson|first2=Katie|date=January 5, 2023|title=Speaker Live Updates: 14 Detractors Flip but McCarthy Loses 12th Ballot |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/06/us/house-speaker-vote-mccarthy|archive-url=https://archive.today/20230106185351/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/01/06/us/house-speaker-vote-mccarthy |archive-date=January 6, 2023|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 6, 2023}}

On the thirteenth ballot, James Comer of Kentucky nominated McCarthy and Veronica Escobar of Texas nominated Jeffries. For the first time, there were no other nominations. Andy Harris of Maryland voted for McCarthy for the first time on this ballot. This left only six Republicans who did not vote for McCarthy. Trone, who was absent on the previous ballot due to undergoing shoulder surgery that morning, returned to the House to continue voting for Jeffries.{{cite news |last=Shabad |first=Rebecca |date=January 6, 2023 |title=House speaker vote live updates: McCarthy bid gains support but still short: Rep. David Trone gets standing ovation after returning to vote after surgery |work=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/live-blog/house-speaker-vote-mccarthy-fourth-day-live-updates-rcna64549#rcrd9761 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106203553/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/live-blog/house-speaker-vote-mccarthy-fourth-day-live-updates-rcna64549#rcrd9761 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |access-date=January 6, 2023 |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |last=Alvarez |first=Alejandro |date=January 6, 2023 |title=After surgery, Maryland congressman rejoins marathon speaker vote—in hospital socks |language=en |work=WTOP |url=https://wtop.com/congress/2023/01/after-surgery-maryland-congressman-rejoins-marathon-speaker-vote-in-hospital-socks/ |access-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107131742/https://wtop.com/congress/2023/01/after-surgery-maryland-congressman-rejoins-marathon-speaker-vote-in-hospital-socks/ |url-status=live }} Scalise then moved to adjourn until 10:00 p.m., in order to allow time for the two absent Republicans to return to Congress. The motion was adopted following a 220–212 vote split along party lines.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/06/house-speaker-vote-live-coverage-kevin-mccarthy/#link-TPJEJRQEIFAMLNPM2MKQBK4ES4|title=This just in: The House moves to adjourn until 10 p.m. Eastern|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106214054/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/06/house-speaker-vote-live-coverage-kevin-mccarthy/#link-TPJEJRQEIFAMLNPM2MKQBK4ES4|archive-date=January 6, 2023|access-date=January 6, 2023|last1=Wagner|first1=John|last2=Alfaro|first2=Mariana|last3=Wang|first3=Amy B.|last4=Scott|first4=Eugene|url-status=live}}

When the House reconvened at 10 p.m., Patrick McHenry of North Carolina nominated McCarthy and Aguilar again nominated Jeffries on the fourteenth ballot. Boebert and Gaetz voted present, Buck and Hunt returned to vote for McCarthy, and four Republicans voted against McCarthy, with two votes for Biggs and two votes for Jordan. McCarthy, who was one vote short of becoming speaker, approached Boebert and Gaetz on the floor and attempted unsuccessfully to convince them to vote for him. As Rogers was arguing with Gaetz, he had to be physically restrained by Richard Hudson of North Carolina.{{cite news|last1= Wu|first1= Nicholas|first2= Meredith Lee|last2= Hill|title= Two lawmakers nearly come to blows — and other crazy moments from McCarthy's final speaker votes|url= https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/07/crazy-moments-mccarthy-speaker-votes-00076887|date= January 7, 2023|access-date= January 7, 2023|work= Politico|archive-date= January 7, 2023|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230107081919/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/07/crazy-moments-mccarthy-speaker-votes-00076887|url-status= live}} According to The New York Times, Gaetz was seeking a subcommittee chairmanship in the House Armed Services Committee, of which Rogers was in line to become chairman.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/07/us/politics/house-floor-confrontation-gaetz-rogers.html|title=The Moment When Tempers Really Got Out of Control on the House Floor|last=Broadwater|first=Luke|work=The New York Times|date=January 7, 2023|access-date=January 7, 2023|archive-date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107062346/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/07/us/politics/house-floor-confrontation-gaetz-rogers.html|url-status=live}}

File:2023 McCarthy-Gaetz confrontation.webm and Gaetz, 1:28 into the video, Richard Hudson of North Carolina is seen restraining Mike Rogers of Alabama from leaning towards Gaetz.]]

The House then proceeded to vote on a motion to adjourn until 12 p.m. on January 9, with McHenry making the motion to adjourn. The plan was to give time to convince the four Republicans who continued to vote for someone other than McCarthy on the 14th ballot to switch their votes to present in order to lower the threshold needed to elect a speaker. It was determined that the plan would not be able to yield a winner if executed on January 9 because a couple of Republicans were unable to attend the session on that day due to family obligations. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia then called Donald Trump on her cell phone, and passed the phone around to the members-elect who continued to refuse to vote for McCarthy. The remaining holdout Republicans eventually agreed to switch their votes, and as a result many Republicans, including McCarthy, scrambled to change their vote from supporting adjournment to opposing it in hopes of a successful fifteenth ballot to take place immediately.{{cite news|url=https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook/2023/01/07/inside-the-28-minutes-that-saved-kevin-mccarthy-00076893|title=POLITICO Playbook: Inside the 28 minutes that saved Kevin McCarthy|date=January 7, 2023|first=Rachael|last=Bade|author-link=Rachael Bade|publisher=Politico|access-date=January 8, 2023|archive-date=January 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108024554/https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook/2023/01/07/inside-the-28-minutes-that-saved-kevin-mccarthy-00076893|url-status=live}} As the vote to adjourn drew to a close, many members began to chant "One more time!"{{cite news|last1=Woodall|first1=Candy|last2=Jackson|first2=David|last3=Lee|first3=Ella|last4=Looker|first4=Rachel|date=January 6, 2023|title=Recap: In dramatic 15th ballot, Republican Kevin McCarthy clinches House speaker vote; members sworn in|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/01/06/speaker-of-the-house-congress-kevin-mccarthy-live-updates/10989644002/|access-date=January 7, 2023|work=USA Today|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106215504/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/01/06/speaker-of-the-house-congress-kevin-mccarthy-live-updates/10989644002/|url-status=live}} Due to the Republicans' switch, the motion failed 155−279, and the House remained in session; 67 Republicans were counted in opposition of adjournment, joined by all Democrats.{{cite news|last=Collins|first=Elizza|date=January 6, 2023|title=Motion to Adjourn Fails|url=https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/house-speaker-vote-kevin-mccarthy-gop/card/motion-to-adjourn-on-track-to-fail-vSG0cG9kuMoAnUlLsOIf|access-date=January 7, 2023|work=The Wall Street Journal|archive-date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107045225/https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/house-speaker-vote-kevin-mccarthy-gop/card/motion-to-adjourn-on-track-to-fail-vSG0cG9kuMoAnUlLsOIf|url-status=live}}

On the fifteenth ballot, Bruce Westerman of Arkansas nominated McCarthy and Dean Phillips of Minnesota nominated Jeffries. The final vote began at 11:50 p.m.,{{cite news |last1=Dutton |first1=Jack |last2=Giella |first2=Lauren |date=January 5, 2023 |title=House Speaker Vote Updates: Election enters third day amid GOP Conflict |url=https://www.newsweek.com/speaker-house-vote-mccarthy-today-latest-news-1771522 |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=Newsweek |archive-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107122516/https://www.newsweek.com/speaker-house-vote-mccarthy-today-latest-news-1771522 |url-status=live }} and the threshold of 215 members present and voting needed for a majority (excluding those present and not voting) was reached at 12:29 a.m.{{cite news |date=January 6, 2023 |title=As it happened: Kevin McCarthy finally elected Speaker on 15th vote |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-us-canada-64189582 |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=BBC News |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106212154/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-us-canada-64189582 |url-status=live }} With a majority of votes cast, McCarthy was elected speaker at 12:37 a.m. after the results were read by the clerk.{{cite web|url=https://www.congress.gov/118/crec/2023/01/06/169/5/CREC-2023-01-06-house-bk2.pdf|title=House of Representatives, January 6, 2023, part 2|website=Congressional Record|date=January 6, 2023|access-date=January 8, 2023|archive-date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107233924/https://www.congress.gov/118/crec/2023/01/06/169/5/CREC-2023-01-06-house-bk2.pdf|url-status=live}}{{cite news |date=January 7, 2023 |title=Kevin McArthy [sic] elected as Speaker after 15 ballots |url=https://nowhabersham.com/kevin-mcarthy-elected-as-speaker-after-15-ballots/ |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=Now Habersham |archive-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107132203/https://nowhabersham.com/kevin-mcarthy-elected-as-speaker-after-15-ballots/ |url-status=live }}

{{Wikinews|Kevin McCarthy elected US House Speaker on 15th ballot}}

Following the election, Hal Rogers of Kentucky, the House dean, administered the oath of office to McCarthy as speaker, and McCarthy swore in all members of the House en masse. The House then agreed at 1:52 a.m. to adjourn until 5:00 p.m. on January 9 by voice vote, without any audible opposition.{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/house-speaker-race-vote-kevin-mccarthy-watch-live-stream-today-2023-01-06/|title=Kevin McCarthy wins speaker race after a grueling 4 days and 15 rounds of voting|first1=Kathryn|last1=Watson|first2=Melissa|last2=Quinn|work=CBS News|date=January 7, 2023|access-date=January 7, 2023|archive-date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107012759/https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/house-speaker-race-vote-kevin-mccarthy-watch-live-stream-today-2023-01-06/|url-status=live}}

All House members of the 118th Congress voted for their party's nominee on every ballot except as noted here.{{cite news| title=Vote Count: McCarthy Elected House Speaker After 15 Ballots| first1=Allison| last1=McCartney| first2=Alicia| last2=Parlapiano| first3=Ashley| last3=Wu| first4=Christine| last4=Zhang| first5=Josh| last5=Williams| first6=Emily| last6=Cochrane| first7=John-Michael| last7=Murphy| date=January 6, 2023| work=The New York Times| url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/01/04/us/politics/house-speaker-vote-tally.html| access-date=January 7, 2023| archive-date=January 6, 2023| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106235355/https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/01/04/us/politics/house-speaker-vote-tally.html| url-status=live}}

{{legend|#B0CEFF|Democratic nominee}}

{{legend|#ffb6b6|Republican nominee}}

|-

! scope="row" | {{sortname|Jim|Banks}}

| 1

| colspan="14" {{n/a|}}

|-

! scope="row" | {{sortname|Donald|Trump}}

| colspan="6" {{n/a|}}

| colspan="2" | 1

| colspan="2" {{n/a|}}

| 1

| colspan="4" {{n/a|}}

|-

! scope="row" | {{sortname|Kevin|Hern}}

| colspan="7" {{n/a|}}

| 2

| 3

| colspan="2" | 7

| 3

| colspan="3" {{n/a|}}

|-

! scope="row" | {{sortname|Byron|Donalds}}

| 1

| colspan="2" {{n/a|}}

| colspan="3" | 20

| 19

| colspan="2" | 17

| 13

| 12

| colspan="4" {{n/a|}}

|-

! scope="row" | {{sortname|Jim|Jordan}}

| 6

| 19

| 20

| colspan="8" {{n/a|}}

| 4

| 6

| 2

| {{n/a|}}

|-

! scope="row" | {{sortname|Andy|Biggs}}

| 10

| colspan="12" {{n/a|}}

| 2

| {{n/a|}}

|-

! scope="row" nowrap | {{sortname|Hakeem|Jeffries}}

| style="background:#B0CEFF" colspan="11" | 212

| style="background:#B0CEFF" | 211

| style="background:#B0CEFF" colspan="3" | 212

|-

! scope="row" | {{sortname|Kevin|McCarthy}}

| colspan="2" style="background:#ffb6b6;" | 203

| style="background:#ffb6b6;" | 202

| colspan="5" style="background:#ffb6b6;" | 201

| colspan="3" style="background:#ffb6b6;" | 200

| style="background:#ffb6b6;" | 213

| style="background:#ffb6b6;" | 214

| style="background:#ffb6b6;" | 216

| style="background:#ffb6b6;" | 216

|- class="sortbottom"

! Votes needed

! colspan="3" | 218

! colspan="8" | 217

! 216

! colspan="2" | 217

! 215

|- class="sortbottom"

! Total votes

! colspan="3" | 434

! colspan="5" | 433

! colspan="3" | 432

! 431

! colspan="2" | 432

! 428

|- class="sortbottom"

! Present

| colspan="3" {{n/a|}}

| colspan="8" | 1

| colspan="2" {{n/a|}}

| 2

| 6

|- class="sortbottom"

! Not voting

| colspan="8" {{n/a|}}

| colspan="3" | 1{{efn|name=missing Buck|Buck missed votes due to a previously scheduled medical procedure.}}

| nowrap | 3{{efn|name=missing Buck}}{{efn|name=missing Hunt}}{{efn|name=missing Trone|Trone missed a vote due to a previously scheduled medical procedure.}}

| 2{{efn|name=missing Buck}}{{efn|name=missing Hunt}}

| colspan="2" {{n/a|}}

|}

File:McCarthy Holding Gavel After Speaker Election.jpg

Thirteen of the fourteen prior U.S. speaker elections that took more than one ballot occurred before the American Civil War. The 68th Congress in 1923 was the last time it took more than one ballot to elect a speaker, and the 36th Congress in 1859 was the last time it took more than nine ballots to elect a speaker. The record number is 133 ballots during the 34th Congress in 1855,{{cite web |date=November 30, 2015 |title=Speaker Elections Decided by Multiple Ballots |url=https://history.house.gov/People/Office/Speakers-Multiple-Ballots/ |access-date=January 6, 2023 |website=US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives |archive-date=August 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806210715/https://history.house.gov/People/Office/Speakers-Multiple-Ballots/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news|url= https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/live-blog/kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-vote-live-updates-rcna64131|title= McCarthy's GOP support splinters as House adjourns without speaker|work= NBC News|date= January 3, 2022|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230104064644/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/live-blog/kevin-mccarthy-house-speaker-vote-live-updates-rcna64131|archive-date=January 4, 2023|access-date=January 8, 2023}} and this election had the fifth-highest number of ballots. In 2023, the election results and its length causing instability were widely reported by media around the world.Multiple examples:

• {{cite news |last=Tomazin |first=Farrah |date=January 7, 2023 |title=Congress unlocked, McCarthy elected Speaker of the House |url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/kevin-mccarthy-wins-over-hardline-republicans-but-not-enough-to-win-speaker-20230107-p5cay0.html |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |archive-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107004454/https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/kevin-mccarthy-wins-over-hardline-republicans-but-not-enough-to-win-speaker-20230107-p5cay0.html |url-status=live }}
• {{cite news |date=January 6, 2023 |title=Aux Etats-Unis, la Chambre des représentants s'enfonce dans la crise |trans-title=In the United States, the House of Representatives is sinking into the crisis |language=fr |work=Le Monde |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2023/01/06/toujours-sans-speaker-le-congres-americain-s-enfonce-dans-la-crise_6156797_3210.html |access-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106224424/https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2023/01/06/toujours-sans-speaker-le-congres-americain-s-enfonce-dans-la-crise_6156797_3210.html |url-status=live }}
• {{cite news |last=Smolar |first=Piotr |date=January 7, 2023 |title=Etats-Unis : Kevin McCarthy, nouveau speaker d'une Chambre des représentants en ébullition |trans-title=United States: Kevin McCarthy, new speaker of a boiling House of Representatives |language=fr |work=Le Monde |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2023/01/07/kevin-mccarthy-nouveau-speaker-d-une-chambre-des-representants-en-ebullition_6156982_3210.html |access-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107095159/https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2023/01/07/kevin-mccarthy-nouveau-speaker-d-une-chambre-des-representants-en-ebullition_6156982_3210.html |url-status=live }}
• {{cite news |last=Burghardt |first=Peter |date=January 6, 2023 |title=USA: Kevin McCarthys Wahl wieder elf Mal gescheitert |trans-title=USA: Kevin McCarthy's election failed again eleven times |url=https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/kevin-mccarthy-wahl-gescheitert-1.5727518 |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=Süddeutsche Zeitung |language=de |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106182320/https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/kevin-mccarthy-wahl-gescheitert-1.5727518 |url-status=live }}
• {{cite news|last=Borchard|first=Ralf|date=January 7, 2023|title=US-Repräsentantenhaus: McCarthy ist gewählt – und jetzt?|trans-title=U.S. House of Representatives: McCarthy is elected – and now?|url=https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/amerika/usa-repraesentantenhaus-wahl-mccaarthy-101.html|access-date=January 7, 2023|work=Tagesschau|language=de|archive-date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107102244/https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/amerika/usa-repraesentantenhaus-wahl-mccaarthy-101.html|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|last=Leibson|first=Yona|date=January 9, 2023|title=בשעה טובה - אחרי 15 סיבובים: קווין מקארתי ניצח בהצבעה ויכהן כראש בית הנבחרים בארה"ב|trans-title=At a good time – after 15 rounds: Kevin McCarthy won the vote and will serve as Speaker of the US House of Representatives|url=https://www.mako.co.il/news-world/2023_q1/Article-299d2259ada8581026.htm?Partner=rss|work=N12|language=he|access-date=January 9, 2023|archive-date=January 10, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230110091535/https://www.mako.co.il/news-world/2023_q1/Article-299d2259ada8581026.htm?Partner=rss|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|url=https://www.haaretz.co.il/news/world/america/2023-01-07/ty-article/.premium/00000185-8a9d-df2e-a5f7-cb9fb8e00000|title=לאחר 14 הפסדים, קווין מקארתי הרפובליקאי נבחר ליו"ר בית הנבחרים|trans-title=After 14 losses, Republican Kevin McCarthy was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives|date=January 9, 2023|work=Haaretz|language=he|access-date=January 9, 2023|archive-date=January 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107231701/https://www.haaretz.co.il/news/world/america/2023-01-07/ty-article/.premium/00000185-8a9d-df2e-a5f7-cb9fb8e00000|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news |last=Mazza |first=|date=January 6, 2023 |title=Usa, continua il caos su McCarthy, trumpiano bocciato (per 13 volte) dai trumpiani. E ora che succede? |trans-title=USA, the chaos continues over McCarthy, a Trumpian rejected (13 times) by the Trumpians. And now what happens? |url=https://www.corriere.it/esteri/23_gennaio_06/ora-che-succede-tre-scenari-uscire-dall-impasse-speaker-camera-usa-637a7a44-8d7d-11ed-a8d9-c0827d0f659f.shtml |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=Corriere della Sera |language=it |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106223820/https://www.corriere.it/esteri/23_gennaio_06/ora-che-succede-tre-scenari-uscire-dall-impasse-speaker-camera-usa-637a7a44-8d7d-11ed-a8d9-c0827d0f659f.shtml |url-status=live }}
• {{cite news |date=January 7, 2023 |title=Usa, McCarthy nuovo Speaker della Camera |trans-title=USA, McCarthy new Speaker of the Chamber |url=https://video.corriere.it/esteri/usa-mccarthy-nuovo-speaker-camera/8d64770a-8e64-11ed-ae40-41a711fcbe95 |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=Corriere della Sera |language=it |archive-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107123050/https://video.corriere.it/esteri/usa-mccarthy-nuovo-speaker-camera/8d64770a-8e64-11ed-ae40-41a711fcbe95 |url-status=live }}
• {{cite news |last1=Litvan |first1=Laura |last2=House |first2=Billy |last3=Wasson |first3=Erik |date=January 7, 2023 |title='Crisis and confusion': Four days of Republican barbs, chaos and cigars |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/01/07/world/politics-diplomacy-world/kevin-mccarthy-speaker-chaos/ |access-date=January 7, 2023 |work=The Japan Times |archive-date=January 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107085542/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/01/07/world/politics-diplomacy-world/kevin-mccarthy-speaker-chaos/ |url-status=live }}

While the House was without a speaker, Congress could not pass bills or adopt resolutions. Incoming members could not set up their constituent services and were barred from accessing their security clearances. The speaker's place in the U.S. presidential line of succession was skipped, and the president pro tempore of the U.S. Senate (in 2023, Patty Murray of Washington) became second in the line after the vice president (Kamala Harris of California).{{cite news|url= https://www.politico.com/minutes/congress/01-3-2023/happening-today/|title= Kevin McCarthy's troubled bid for speaker. Swearing-in ceremonies. McConnell becomes longest-serving Senate party leader|last=Vu|first= Nancy |work= Politico|date= January 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103190053/https://www.politico.com/minutes/congress/01-3-2023/happening-today/|archive-date=January 3, 2023|access-date=January 8, 2023}}{{cite news |last=Broadwater |first=Luke |title=Lacking a Speaker, One Part of Government Ceases to Function |date=January 4, 2023 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/04/us/politics/house-speaker-representatives.html |access-date=January 6, 2023 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106002618/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/04/us/politics/house-speaker-representatives.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web|url=https://news.yahoo.com/sen-patty-murray-second-line-132015431.html|title=Sen. Patty Murray Is Second in Line to Presidency, For Now|work=The New York Times|via=Yahoo! News|date=January 5, 2023|first=Maggie|last=Astor|access-date=January 6, 2023|archive-date=January 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106004211/https://news.yahoo.com/sen-patty-murray-second-line-132015431.html|url-status=live}}

Moreover, the government of the District of Columbia was unable to enact any laws. Because the District of Columbia Home Rule Act specifies that laws passed by the district are subject to a congressional review period before becoming law, the district must hand-deliver physical copies of the laws to both the Senate's president pro tempore and the House's speaker. Therefore, with no speaker to receive the copies, the congressional review period could not begin.{{cite news |last=Austermuhle |first=Martin |title=Bills Passed by D.C. Council Remain in Awkward Limbo as Republicans Fail to Elect Speaker of the House |work=DCist |date=January 5, 2023 |url=https://dcist.com/story/23/01/05/dc-laws-congress-speaker-house/ |access-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106035710/https://dcist.com/story/23/01/05/dc-laws-congress-speaker-house/ |url-status=live }}

C-SPAN, an American non-governmental cable and satellite television network that televises proceedings of the House, was approved before the speaker election to operate its cameras with its own staff, free of the restrictions by government employees who usually provide its feed. This deviation from its typical broadcast style captured members huddled and reaction shots that viewers do not normally see.{{cite news |last=DeChalus |first=Camila |title=With the House in Chaos, C-SPAN Shows Footage Americans Don't Usually See |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=January 5, 2023 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/05/c-span-cameras-house-speaker-vote/ |access-date=January 6, 2023 |url-access=limited |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106060837/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/05/c-span-cameras-house-speaker-vote/ |url-status=live }} C-SPAN aired extremely unlikely conversations between unaligned members, such as Gosar and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York,{{cite news |last=Werpin |first=Alex |title=C-SPAN Is America's Hottest TV Drama in 2023 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=January 5, 2023 |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/c-span-house-speaker-1235291751/ |access-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-date=January 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230106000954/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/c-span-house-speaker-1235291751/ |url-status=live }} and focused on George Santos of New York, a newly elected Republican member accused of lying about much of his biography.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2023/01/03/george-santos-first-day-in-congress/|title=George Santos had an awkward first day at the office|last1=Zak|first1=Dan|last2=Terris|first2=Ben|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 3, 2023|access-date=January 7, 2023|archive-date=January 4, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104150555/https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2023/01/03/george-santos-first-day-in-congress/|url-status=live}} The network saw increased popularity as it broadcast the election.

On January 8, Chip Roy, one of the Republicans who held out on voting for McCarthy, stated that C-SPAN's increased independence was a good thing and that he may be open to it being permanent.{{cite news |last=Olander |first=Olivia |title=GOP Lawmaker Open to Letting C-SPAN Cameras Run Free |date=January 8, 2023 |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/08/c-span-cameras-congress-speaker-00076926 |access-date=January 13, 2023}} The restrictions traditionally placed upon C-SPAN went back into effect after the House established its rules. Matt Gaetz, another Republican holdout, introduced an amendment that would allow C-SPAN "to broadcast and record the floor proceedings of the House with not less than 4 cameras owned and operated by [them]".{{cite news |author1-last=Kamisar |author1-first=Ben |author2-last=Stewart |author2-first=Kyle |title=Some Lawmakers Want McCarthy to Allow C-SPAN Cameras in House Chamber |date=January 10, 2023 |work=NBCNews |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/meetthepressblog/lawmakers-want-mccarthy-allow-c-span-cameras-house-rcna65186 |access-date=January 13, 2023}} C-SPAN also submitted a formal petition to McCarthy to give it more independence. Democrat Maxwell Frost of Florida also announced his support for C-SPAN's requests.

• Removal of Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House
• 2022 Senate Republican Conference leadership election

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