The 118th Congress convened for the first time on Tuesday.
Item #1 on the agenda is voting for House Speaker.
As WeLoveTrump noted, Rep. Kevin McCarthy is facing fierce GOP opposition to win the role.
McCarthy Still Faces Fierce Opposition as House Speaker Vote Approaches, LIVE Coverage
McCarthy lost the first, second, and third vote for House Speaker.
19 House Republicans defected from electing McCarthy in the first vote.
McCarthy Fails Again In Second Ballot pic.twitter.com/ElBa7bLjM6
— The Columbia Bugle 🇺🇸 (@ColumbiaBugle) January 3, 2023
By the third vote, another GOP House Republican has emerged as a potential candidate.
That candidate is Rep. Jim Jordan.
The Republican 'defectors' have rallied around Jordan for House Speaker.
According to CNN Capitol Hill reporter Melanie Zanona, Rep. Matt Gaetz nominated Jim Jordan for House Speaker.
And GAETZ, who initially voted for Biggs for speaker, now nominates JORDAN.
Confirms what @AnnieGrayerCNN @mkraju & me first reported about the McCarthy opposition coalescing around Jordan on the 2nd ballot.
— Melanie Zanona (@MZanona) January 3, 2023
Jordan picked up 20 votes in the third vote.
CSPAN currently has this live feed on Twitter:
LIVE --> Opening Day of 118th Congress - House of Representatives - LIVE on C-SPAN https://t.co/s22yfzPyZs https://t.co/9399jTRCmk
— CSPAN (@cspan) January 3, 2023
Here are the Republicans who voted for Jordan for House Speaker:
The 19 who voted for Jordan on second ballot
Andy Ogles
Lauren Boebert
Michael Cloud
Anna Paulina Luna
Mary Miller
Keith Self
Andy Biggs
Dan Bishop
Andrew Clyde
Phil Crane
Matt Gaetz
Bob Good
Paul Gosar
Andy Harris
Josh Brecheen
Ralph Norman
Scott Perry
Matt Rosendale
Chip Roy— Manu Raju (@mkraju) January 3, 2023
According to the Washington Post's Paul Kane, the last time this happened was 1923.
In 1923, it went to nine ballots.
We are into uncharted territory: No one in House chamber right now has ever been alive for a multiple-ballot vote for House speaker, let alone seen one in person.
With 7 votes from Rs for someone other than McCarthy, we are certain to head to a 2nd ballot.
Last one: 1923.— Paul Kane (@pkcapitol) January 3, 2023
According to Ben Sheehan, the House Speaker vote took two months in 1855.
https://twitter.com/ThatBenSheehan/status/1610337060233306112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1610337060233306112%7Ctwgr%5E86963249fb0f710887b85eab604e01946995514a%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.zerohedge.com%2Fpolitical%2Fbullst-mccarthy-bid-house-house-speaker-devolves-chaos
Politico doesn't think Jim Jordan has a chance at House Speaker:
After McCarthy fails to get 218 votes on the first ballot, the Freedom Caucus antagonists have signaled that they will start backing another yet-unnamed candidate on the second ballot. The Daily Beast reported Monday night that that person is Ohio Rep. JIM JORDAN, the longtime McCarthy critic-turned-ally.
The Ohio Republican, however, has no shot at being speaker — something that his adoring conservative colleagues know very well. But, per the Daily Beast story, that’s not the point: They’re hoping to peel off more Republicans to back Jordan, aiming to have McCarthy’s vote count decrease from the first ballot to the second.
It’s an open question how long today will go until someone nominates a viable candidate for the gavel — someone like STEVE SCALISE (R-La.) or PATRICK McHENRY (R-N.C.). And there’s a fear that if one of these member’s names is called too early in the process, the conference will turn on them.
Buckle up. It’s going to be a long day.
It's anyone's guess how long this contentious battle will take place in the House.
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