Despite the unprecedented blocking of a handful of elected Trumpists, Kevin McCarthy ended up obtaining the majority of the votes required to become the “speaker”.
216 votes against 212 for the Democratic candidate Hakeem Jeffries
After 15 rounds of voting and four days of unprecedented deadlock, the House of Representatives in UNITED STATES finally has a “speaker”. Kevin McCarthy was elected president of the lower house of the United States Congress on Friday night a little after midnight. The elected representative from California won by 216 votes, against 212 for the Democratic candidate Hakeem Jeffries. On the other hand, 6 elected officials “present” abstained. The required majority is 218 votes, but with two allies absent – for a medical problem and a birth – it was reduced to 216 votes out of 434 elected, explains 20 Minutes.
Kevin McCarthy elected after heated debate
The tension was palpable in recent hours. In the 14th round, Kevin McCarthy was close to winning the vote, but the defection of Matt Gaetz, elected from Florida and one of his most stubborn opponents changed the situation. An elected official from Alabama, Mike Rogers, nearly attacked Gaetz, but a colleague quickly intervened. “Stay civilized!”, someone chanted. Former President Donald Trump then allegedly persuaded Gaetz to let the ballot continue and elect McCarthy.
After this election of Kevin McCarthy at the head of the House of Representatives, the newly elected can take an oath, and the members of the various parliamentary committees can be appointed.
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