McCarthy Elected Speaker After Tense 15 Rounds – And One Friday Night Fracas

AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

Kevin McCarthy was elected House speaker earlier Saturday morning after 15 rounds of voting and a fracas between two of his GOP colleagues.

The House speaker received 216 votes after falling one vote short during the 14th round on Friday night. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) had shouted “Present!” as the final and deciding vote. He had gotten up and left when his name was initially called, but returned and was called on again at the end.

In the 15th round, McCarthy received 216 out of 427 votes cast for speaker. Five members voted “Present.”

McCarthy and Gaetz exchanged words before the former finally stormed off. McCarthy was talked down by one of his key allies, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC).

After the tense exchange, Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL) immediately had to be restrained as he shouted at and lunged toward Gaetz.

A photo of the moment will likely define a contentious five calendar days of voting as a slim GOP majority finally began the 118th Congress.

AP Photo/Andrew Harnik

McCarthy made significant concessions to the holdouts in order to corral the votes needed for the gavel. He ended Thursday with 21 holdouts as the pundit class began to question whether he should exit the race. He vowed not to back down.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries came in second through five days of voting with the entirety of the Democratic caucus backing him for speaker. Jeffries received 212 votes on each of the 15 ballots beginning on Tuesday.

With McCarthy finally securing the House’s top position, the new Congress can begin with members being sworn in and the Republican caucus laying out its vision for the next two years.