House GOP Republicans held an internal vote today to determine the next Speaker of the House. Steve Scalise came out as the winner. The voting breakdown was 113 for Scalise, 99 for Jim Jordan, and 8 people voted “present.” It is not clear who voted “present” so it is not known if this was the same group of 8 who successfully ousted the previous Speaker, Kevin McCarthy.
Scalise is widely respected and seen as more conservative than McCarthy. He is also hailed by many as a hero after being shot by a maniac during practice for the Congressional Baseball Game back in 2017. The current threshold to gain a majority vote in the House is 217 instead of the usual 218 due to two vacant seats.
House Republicans hold a very slim margin of majority, only 221 seats. This means that if just five Republicans reject Steve Scalise becoming the next Speaker, then the official full House vote will fail. Each time the vote fails, the House must regroup and vote again.
Kevin McCarthy’s confirmation process took an agonizing 15 rounds of voting. And, of course, he was ousted just nine months later by a group of 8 people led by Florida Rep Matt Gaetz.
SOURCES:
House speaker: Republicans nominate Steve Scalise to be House speaker and will try to unite before a floor vote | AP News
House Republicans choose Scalise as their candidate for speaker after McCarthy’s ouster | Fox News
Republicans Nominate Steve Scalise for House Speaker: Live Updates – The New York Times
Live updates: Steve Scalise wins Republican vote for House speaker nominee
House speaker vote live updates: Republicans pick Rep. Steve Scalise as nominee – The Washington Post
Steve Scalise energy staffers to know
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise diagnosed with blood cancer, undergoing treatment | AP News
What Was Nancy Mace Thinking With That Inane Scarlet Letter Stunt? | The New Republic
