JANUARY 9, 2024:
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday set a mid-March special election date to fill the U.S. House seat vacated by former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
In a statement, Newsom set the March 19, 2024, primary date for the 20th Congressional District contest. If no candidate wins a majority of the vote, the top two vote-getters would advance to a May 21 matchup to fill the seat.
The solidly Republican district is anchored in Bakersfield, which cuts through parts of several counties in the state’s interior farm belt. The seat is expected to stay in GOP hands.
McCarthy announced in early December that he would step down, two months after his historic ouster as House speaker. The announcement capped a stunning end to a House career for the onetime deli counter owner, who ascended through state and national politics to become second in line to the presidency, until a cluster of hard-right conservatives engineered his removal in October.
McCarthy is the only speaker in history to be voted out of the job.
Newsom scheduled the election two weeks after the state’s March 5 presidential primary, which will give candidates additional time to campaign for the vacant seat and reduce the chance for voter confusion with the primary election for the presidential race and other 2024 contests, including state legislative seats.
The term for the seat vacated by McCarthy runs through January 2025.
McCarthy’s departure set off a scramble to replace him that is being sorted out in court. A state judge earlier ruled that a McCarthy protégé, Republican Assemblyman Vince Fong, could appear on the ballot as a candidate for the former speaker’s seat, even though he earlier filed for reelection for his Assembly seat. That decision is being appealed by the state.
OCTOBER 25, 2023, UPDATE:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican congressman Mike Johnson of Louisiana has been elected House speaker. Republicans eagerly gave Johnson the gavel on Wednesday (Oct. 25, 2023) by a vote of 220-209, with a few absences. Johnson picked up an important nod of support ahead of the vote from Donald Trump. Johnson was the fourth candidate Republicans nominated to replace Kevin McCarthy. The Republican majority has been without a speaker for three weeks and is desperate to end the chaos and get back to work. He was quickly sworn into office and said Republicans were ready to get to work and “restore the people’s faith” in the House. Far-right members refused to accept a more traditional speaker. Moderate conservatives didn’t want a hard-liner.
OCTOBER 25, 2023:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans have chosen congressman Mike Johnson of Louisiana as their latest nominee for House speaker. Johnson will face a floor vote Wednesday (Oct. 25, 2023) trying to unify the divided Republican majority. Johnson is the fourth candidate Republicans have nominated to replace Kevin McCarthy. Johnson’s nomination came just hours after an earlier pick, congressman Tom Emmer of Minnesota, dropped out amid opposition from Donald Trump. The Republican majority has been without a speaker for three weeks and is desperate to end the chaos and get back to work. Johnson had no opposition on a private tally, but many were absent. Johnson will need almost all Republicans to win the gavel in a floor vote.
OCTOBER 24, 2023, UPDATE:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans have picked Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota as their nominee for House speaker as they try for a third time to fill the top leadership position and get Congress back to work. Emmer jumped out front in private balloting Tuesday (Oct. 24, 2023) as the top vote-getter among the hodge-podge list of mostly lesser-known congressmen for speaker, a powerful position second in line to the presidency. But it’s no sure path to the gavel. Emmer won a simple majority of his colleagues behind closed doors but will need the support of almost all Republicans during a House floor vote ahead. It’s three weeks since Republicans ousted Kevin McCarthy as speaker.
OCTOBER 24, 2023:
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans will meet privately to try nominating a new House speaker. It’s three weeks since Republicans ousted Kevin McCarthy. The House speaker will need to accomplish the seemingly impossible job of uniting a broken, bitter GOP majority and returning to the work of Congress. The candidates are a hodge-podge of lesser-known congressmen including Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota, conservative leader Kevin Hern of Oklahoma and Florida newcomer Byron Donalds, who’s aligned with Donald Trump. The private session Tuesday (Oct. 24, 2023) could take all day before a nominee emerges. The plan is to have a House floor vote later this week.
OCTOBER 18, 2023:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Jim Jordan has failed to win the vote to become House speaker on a crucial second ballot. Next steps are uncertain as Republican lawmakers float other options. The hard-edged ally of Donald Trump appears to have no path for the gavel. But Jordan vowed to stay in the race. A surprisingly large and diverse group of 20 Republican lawmakers rejected his bid on Tuesday, then 22 on Wednesday. Many view Jordan as too extreme for the powerful speaker’s job, second in line to the president. Some holdout Republicans are talking with Democrats about an extraordinary plan to give a temporary speaker more power to reopen the House.
OCTOBER 16, 2023:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hard-charging right-wing Republican Rep. Jim Jordan is shoring up support to win the House speaker’s gavel. One by one Jordan, has been peeling off detractors who view the Ohio Republican as too extreme. A pressure campaign from Donald Trump allies including Fox News’ Sean Hannity is helping to round up support. A floor vote that could turn into a showdown is set for midday Tuesday (Oct. 17, 2023). In a letter Monday to colleagues, Jordan took a cooperative tone, vowing to “bring all Republicans together.” It’s been two weeks without a House speaker after hardline Republicans ousted Kevin McCarthy.
OCTOBER 11, 2023:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Stalemated over a new House speaker, the Republican majority is scheduled to convene behind closed doors to try to vote on a nominee. But lawmakers say Wednesday’s (Oct. 11, 2023) private ballots to replace ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy could take a while. Two leading contenders, Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan appear to be splitting the vote. McCarthy was openly ready to reclaim the gavel he just lost, but told colleagues at a candidate forum late Tuesday not to put his name up for nomination. Republicans have created a stalemate that threatens to keep Congress partly shuttered.
OCTOBER 10, 2023:
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House Republican majority is stuck, one week after the ouster of Speaker Kevin McCarthy, with lawmakers unable to coalesce around a new leader in a stalemate that threatens to keep Congress partly shuttered indefinitely.
On Tuesday evening (Oct. 10, 2023), two leading contenders for the gavel, Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, were scheduled to address colleagues behind closed doors at a candidate forum, but they appeared to be splitting the vote.
McCarthy, meanwhile, was openly ready to reclaim the gavel he just lost, but was seen by many as a longshot option unlikely to win back the handful of hardliners who just ousted him.
“This has been going on for days. Members want to come together,” Scalise said late Monday at the Capitol. “We’ve got to get back on track,”
House Republicans took the majority aspiring to operate as a team, and run government more business-like, but have drifted far from that goal. Just 10 months in power, the historic ouster of their House speaker — the first in U.S. history — and the prolonged infighting it has unleashed is undercutting the Republicans’ ability to govern at a time of crisis at home and abroad.
Now as House Republicans push ahead toward snap elections Wednesday aimed at finding a new nominee for speaker, the hard-right flank coalition of lawmakers that ousted McCarthy has shown what an oversized role a few lawmakers can have in choosing the successor.
“This is a hard conference to lead,” said Rep. Steve Womack, R-Ark., “A lot of free agents.”
Both Scalise and Jordan are working furiously to shore up support. Both are easily winning over dozens of supporters, but it’s unclear if either can amass the 217 votes likely needed in a floor vote that could come as soon as Wednesday.
Both conservatives from the right flank, neither man is the heir apparent to McCarthy.
Scalise as the second-ranking Republican would be next in line for the gavel and is seen as a hero among colleagues for having survived severe injuries from a mass shooting during a congressional baseball practice in 2017. Now battling blood cancer, the Louisianan is not a clear lock.
Jordan is a high-profile political firebrand known for his close alliance with Trump, particularly when the then-president was working to overturn the results of the 2020 election, leading to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Trump has backed Jordan’s bid for the gavel.
Several lawmakers, including Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who engineered McCarthy’s ouster said they would be willing to support either Scalise or Jordan.
“I think it’s a competitive race for speaker because we’ve got two greats,” said Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky.
Barr said he was working to help secure votes for Scalise, but would be comfortable with either candidate.
Others though, particularly more centrist conservative Republicans from districts that are narrowly split between the parties, are holding out for another choice.
“Personally, I’m still with McCarthy,” said Rep. David Valadao, a Republican who represents a California district not far from the former speaker’s district.
“We’ll see how that plays out, but I do know a large percentage of the membership wants to be there with him as well.”
For the interim, Speaker Pro-Tempore Rep. Patrick McHenry is effectively in charge. He has shown little interest in expanding his power beyond the role he was assigned — an interim leader tasked with ensuring the election of the next speaker.
The role was created in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack to ensure the continuity of government. McHenry’s name was at the top of a list submitted by McCarthy when he became speaker in January.
While some Republicans, and Democrats, are open to empowering McHenry the longer he holds the temporary position, that seems unlikely for now as the speaker’s fight drags on.
McHenry told reporters it’s “my goal” to keep to the schedule to have hold a House speaker election on Wednesday. He quickly gaveled the House in and out of a brief session on Tuesday, with no business conducted.
OCTOBER 5, 2023:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Some members of the GOP are wondering if anyone can take Kevin McCarthy’s place as a fundraising dynamo and party builder. McCarthy’s ouster as House speaker also leaves a void atop the groups that raise tens of millions of dollars to elect Republicans. The California congressman spent years raising mountains of campaign cash, recruiting top candidates and painstakingly building political relationships. McCarthy supporter Rep. Kelly Armstrong of North Dakota says, “Nobody can raise money like him.” Already, the national committee raising money for House Republicans has postponed a fundraiser McCarthy was set to headline. McCarthy has so far suggested he’ll continue to bolster the GOP nationally.
OCTOBER 4, 2023:
WASHINGTON (AP) — Speaker Kevin McCarthy was voted out of the job Tuesday (Oct. 3, 2023) in an extraordinary showdown — a first in U.S. history, forced by a contingent of hard-right conservatives and throwing the House and its Republican leadership into chaos.
It’s the end of the political line for McCarthy, who has said repeatedly that he never gives up, but found himself with almost no options remaining. Neither the right-flank Republicans who engineered his ouster nor the Democrats who piled on seem open to negotiating.
McCarthy told lawmakers in the evening he would not run again for speaker, putting the gavel up for grabs. Next steps are highly uncertain with no obvious successor to lead the House Republican majority. Action is halted in the House until next week, when Republicans try to elect a new speaker.
“I may have lost this vote today, but as I walk out of this chamber I feel fortunate to have served,” McCarthy said at a press conference at the Capitol, alternating between upbeat assessment of his speakership and angry score-settling of those who ousted him.
Still, he said, “I wouldn’t change a thing.”
McCarthy’s chief rival, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, orchestrated the rare vote on the obscure “motion to vacate,” and pushed ahead swiftly into a dramatic afternoon roll call.
While McCarthy enjoyed support from most Republicans in his slim majority, eight Republican detractors — many of the same hard-right holdouts who tried to stop him from becoming speaker in January — essentially forced him out.
Stillness fell as the presiding officer gaveled the vote closed, 216-210, saying the office of the speaker “is hereby declared vacant.”
Moments later, a top McCarthy ally, Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., took the gavel and, according to House rules, was named speaker pro tempore, to serve in the office until a new speaker is chosen.
The House then briskly recessed as lawmakers met privately to discuss the path forward.
It was a stunning moment for McCarthy, a punishment fueled by growing grievances but sparked by his weekend decision to work with Democrats to keep the federal government open rather than risk a shutdown.
But in many ways, McCarthy’s ouster was set in motion when, in deal-making with hard-right holdouts at the start of the year, he agreed to a series of demands — including a rules change that allowed any single lawmaker to file the motion to vacate.
As the House fell silent, Gaetz, a top ally of Donald Trump, rose to offer his motion.
Leaders tried to turn it back, but the vote was 218-208, with 11 Republicans against tabling the motion, a sign of trouble to come.
The House then opened a floor debate unseen in modern times, and Republicans argued publicly among themselves for more than an hour.
“It’s a sad day,” Republican Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma said as debate got underway, urging his colleagues not to plunge the House Republican majority “into chaos.”
But Gaetz shot back during the debate, “Chaos is Speaker McCarthy.”
As the fiery debate dragged on, many of the complaints against the speaker revolved around his truthfulness and his ability to keep the promises he has made.
Almost alone, Gaetz led his side of the floor debate, criticizing the debt deal McCarthy made with President Joe Biden and the vote to prevent a government shutdown, which conservatives opposed as they demanded steeper spending cuts.
But a long line of McCarthy supporters stood up for him, including Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, a leader of the conservative Freedom Caucus, who said, “He has kept his word.” Rep. Garret Graves, R-La., waved his cellphone, saying it was “disgusting” that hard-right colleagues were fundraising off the move in text messages seeking donations.
McCarthy, of California, insisted he would not cut a deal with Democrats to remain in power — not that he could have relied on their help even if he had asked.
Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a letter to colleagues that he wants to work with Republicans, but he was unwilling to provide the votes needed to save McCarthy.
“It is now the responsibility of the GOP members to end the House Republican Civil War,” Jeffries said, announcing the Democratic leadership would vote for the motion to oust the speaker.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden “hopes the House will quickly elect a Speaker.” Once that happens, she said, “he looks forward to working together with them.”
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell issued a statement thanking McCarthy for “what is often a thankless role.
At the Capitol, both Republicans and Democrats met privately ahead of the historic afternoon vote.
Behind closed doors, McCarthy told fellow Republicans: Let’s get on with it.
McCarthy invoked Republican Speaker Joseph Cannon, who more than 100 years ago confronted his critics head-on by calling their bluff and setting the vote himself on his ouster. Cannon survived that takedown attempt, which was the first time the House had actually voted to consider removing its speaker. A more recent threat against John Boehner in 2015 didn’t make it to a vote but led him to early retirement.
Gaetz was in attendance, but he did not address the room.
Across the way in the Capitol, Democrats lined up for a long discussion and unified around one common point: McCarthy cannot be trusted, several lawmakers in the room said.
“I think it’s safe to say there’s not a lot of good will in that room for Kevin McCarthy,” said Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass.
“At the end of the day, the country needs a speaker that can be relied upon,” said Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. “We don’t trust him. Their members don’t trust him. And you need a certain degree of trust to be the speaker.”
Removing the speaker launches the House Republicans into chaos heading into a busy fall when Congress will need to fund the government again or risk a mid-November shutdown.
Typically, top leaders would be next in line for the job, but Majority Leader Steve Scalise is battling cancer and Majority Whip Tom Emmer, like any potential candidate, may have trouble securing the vote. Another leading Republican, Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, is also a Trump ally.
One of McHenry’s first acts in the temporary position was to oust Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi from her honorary office at the Capitol while she was away in California to pay tribute to Sen. Dianne Feinstein.
“No matter who is going to be the speaker, the challenges still remain,” Scalise said. “But I think the opportunity is there to continue moving forward.”
Asked if he was physically up to the job, Scalise said, “I feel great.”
It took McCarthy himself 15 rounds in January over multiple days of voting before he secured the support from his colleagues to gain the gavel.
Trump, the former president who is the Republican front-runner in the 2024 race to challenge Biden, complained about the chaos. “Why is it that Republicans are always fighting among themselves,” he asked on social media.
Asked about McCarthy’s ouster as he exited court in New York, where he is on trial for business fraud, Trump did not respond.
One key McCarthy ally, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who is also close with Trump, took to social media urging support for “our speaker.”
Republicans left the chamber in a daze, totally uncertain about next steps. “I honestly don’t know,” said Rep. Debbie Lesko, R-Ariz. “This is a total disaster.”
Many had lined up to hug McCarthy, some to shake his hand.
Democrats, who have bristled at McCarthy’s leadership — cajoling them one minute, walking away from deals the next — said they were just holding back, waiting for Republicans to figure out how to run the House.
Rep, Don Bacon, R-Neb., the leader of a centrist group, said the only option was to leave the eight hardliners behind and try to work across the aisle. “We’re going to stay with Kevin,” he said. “He told us earlier he’ll never quit.”
But McCarthy made it clear Tuesday night that he would not try to win back the job.
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