Speaker McCarthy Ousted in Far-Right Republican Coup
House Republicans - aided by a Democratic caucus united in opposition to the Republican majority - have sacked Congressman Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-20) as Speaker of the House. This is the first time in our nation's history that a speaker of the House has ever been voted out of office.
In a 216 - 210 vote on Tuesday, October 3, the U.S. House of Representatives declared the 'office of the Speaker to be vacant.' In the end, 8 Republicans joined all Y Democrats present for the vote in ousting McCarthy from his position. You can review the official vote count from the office of the Clerk of the House here.
Since 2003, House rules have required the speaker to submit a list of names to the clerk of members to act in the case of his or her vacancy. This list is not public. According to Rule I, clause 8 of the House rules, the next person on that list “shall act as Speaker pro tempore until the election of a Speaker or a Speaker pro tempore.”
Representative Patrick McHenry (R-NC-10) was named Speaker Pro Tempore by McCarthy in January. He recommended recess subject until the call of the Chair (himself) until both caucuses had huddled on next steps. We strongly recommend reading this transition overview from NBC News to learn more about this process.
How We Got Here
With his slim majority, McCarthy could only afford to lose four Republican votes. By early Tuesday morning, it was clear that at least five Republicans in his caucus were voting in favor of Congressman Matt Gaetz's (R-FL-01) motion to vacate. From that point, it was simply a question of attendance (more Democratic absences would result in a lower threshold for saving Speaker McCarthy) and Democratic support. Quickly after a 9am Democratic caucus meeting, however, it appeared clear that the Democratic caucus would be nearly unanimous in opposition to saving McCarthy from the clutches of his own Party.
Some concessions floated included additional aid for Ukraine, a true coalition government (even partisan numbers on key committees, such as the Rule Committee), abandonment of the impeachment inquiry into President Biden, a FY 2024 appropriations package more palatable to Democrats, and more. At the end of the day, however, Speaker McCarthy made it clear he had no appetite for negotiating with Democrats - although it's also fair to note that even with concessions, a life ring from the Democratic caucus was highly unlikely.
Tuesday afternoon, House Democratic leadership published this letter urging colleagues to vote affirmatively to oust Speaker McCarthy. Former House Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi tweeted, "The Speaker of the House is chosen by the Majority Party. In this Congress, it is the responsibility of House Republicans to choose a nominee & elect the Speaker on the Floor. At this time, there is no justification for a departure from this tradition."
Congressman Gaetz has long been in opposition to Speaker McCarthy's leadership of the House of Representatives. Constitution Partners recently dove into the details of this power struggle here.
Gaetz was cagey in a floor speech Monday afternoon when he threatened the Speaker with a motion to vacate "unless questions were answered" to his liking. Hours later, however, he proceeded to take to the floor once more and formally give notice of his intent to file his motion to vacate the office of the Speaker of the House. Minutes after his evening floor action, Gaetz spoke at length to the press on the steps of the Capitol Building to articulate his reasons for taking this course of action.
Operating under a Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the government until November 17 while lawmakers work to put together and pass the FY 2024 appropriations package, the House of Representatives will now seek to find a new leader. You can read Constitution Partners analysis of the current CR here.
