House of Representatives: why is it taking so long to elect a speaker?

What was supposed to be a day of triumph for Republicans coming into the US House majority turned into chaos on Tuesday as fighting over who should lead them ended with no speaker elected.

Kevin McCarthy has led House Republicans since 2019 but he could not overcome opposition from the right following an hours-long series of votes. The opposition from 20 lawmakers stopped the House starting work and delayed the swearing-in of returning members and freshmen.

Needing 218 votes in the full House, McCarthy received 203 in the first two votes, less than the Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries. McCarthy dropped to 202 in round three.

Detractors had warned for months that McCarthy did not have the votes to be speaker, second in line to the presidency. McCarthy negotiated with members prominently including Andy Biggs, Scott Perry and Matt Gaetz until Monday night, when the ultra-conservative Freedom Caucus presented its final offer, including demands for committee assignments. McCarthy refused.

As a result, those members and others opposed him.

Without a speaker, the House cannot fully form since that person is the presiding officer and administrative head. Swearing in members, naming committee chairs, engaging in floor proceedings and launching oversight investigations will all be delayed until a speaker is elected.

It remains unclear if McCarthy can pass the threshold to become the next speaker, or when. The number of Republicans who have pledged support to other candidates is at 20, with some suspecting that list will grow.

The House is scheduled to begin voting again at noon on Wednesday. Once the House is in a quorum, meaning the minimum number of members are present to proceed, nominees will be read aloud before a roll-call vote.

Many of the rightwingers opposing McCarthy are close Trump allies. Nonetheless, on Tuesday, Gaetz nominated Jordan, a rightwinger currently loyal to McCarthy.

Should he come up short again on Wednesday, the clerk will repeat the roll call vote until McCarthy is able to garner a majority or a motion to adjourn is approved.

The last time the House did not elect a speaker on the first ballot was 1923, when the election stretched for nine votes.

Republicans had the majority despite losing a staggering 77 seats, shrinking their margin over Democrats from 171 to 18. The majority party named Frederick Gillett of Massachusetts to the position but several other candidates, including a Democrat, received votes during the roll call.

This resulted in a series of ballots over three days before the majority leader, Nicholas Longworth of Ohio, held an emergency meeting with those opposing. Their concern, similarly to those issued against McCarthy, was over rules changes they believed deserved a fair hearing. Longworth obliged. The next day, Gillett got the 215 votes he needed.

There is also the example of 1855-56, in the years of division over slavery that preceded the civil war. Then, with the Republican party newly emerged as an anti-slavery force, it took 133 ballots over nearly two months to elect a speaker.