House speaker vote: McCarthy thanks Trump for final votes as fight nearly breaks out on floor
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Your support makes all the difference.Kevin McCarthy was finally elected speaker of the House of Representatives after 15 rounds of voting, clinching the gavel just after midnight on Saturday.
The longest contest for speaker of the House of Representatives in more than a century finally came to an end as six remaining Republican holdouts opted to vote “present”, giving Mr McCarthy a majority over Democrat Hakeem Jeffries.
Earlier, Republican House member Mike Rogers had to be physically restrained after lunging at Matt Gaetz amid chaotic scenes in the House.
Congressman Richard Hudson grabbed Mr Rogers by his face and physically pulled him away.
In his first speech as speaker, Mr McCarthy thanked former president Donald Trump for “helping get those final votes”.
Mr McCarthy’s bid had been delayed by a group of far-right Republicans including the likes of Lauren Boebert and Mr Gaetz.
However, on Friday he made significant progress in the 12th ballot, managing to flip a total of 14 representatives-elect in his favour after lengthy negotiations.
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One initial sign of GOP control
The first sign of the new Republican majority as the 118th Congress convenes?
House officials have removed the metal detectors that Nancy Pelosi had installed after the January 6 Capitol riot.
There will also be no more remote voting under the GOP majority, so as things get underway there will be a quorum call.
Never-Kevin groups sitting together
Several of the anti-Kevin McCarthy group have sat together in groups in the House chamber.
McCarthy enters House chamber
Kevin McCarthy has entered the House chamber ahead of the vote and is mingling with other representatives and taking pictures.
434 members present
The quorum call has ended with 434 members present in the chamber. The 118th Congress kicks off with Elise Stefanik nominating “the gentleman from California” Kevin McCarthy to be the next House Speaker.
“No one. No one in this body has worked harder for this Republican majority than Kevin McCarthy,” she says to applause.
‘Democrats are united'
Democratic Rep Pete Aguilar nominates Hakeem Jeffries to be Speaker of the House.
There is loud applause, first for the nomination and then when he adds: “Today House Democrats are united.”
Greene lashes out at ‘destructionists’ blocking McCarthy
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene criticised Republicans who oppose Kevin McCarthy’s bid for speaker of the House after a heated Republican conference meeting on Tuesday.
House Republicans had a heated discussion in the basement of the Capitol as Mr McCarthy sought to secure the 218 votes necessary to become speaker.
“I think it makes them destructionists,” the Georgia Republican told The Independent. “You can’t accomplish anything if you just say ‘never.’”
Eric Garcia reports from the Capitol.
Marjorie Taylor Greene lashes out at ‘destructionists’ blocking McCarthy speaker bid
GOP Rep Dan Crenshaw calls conservative dissidents ‘pretty f***ing stupid’
Loud Democrat applause as Rep Aguilar notes that he is a Latino nominating a Black man to be the leader of the chamber for the first time in the country’s history.
Gosar nominates Biggs as third candidate for speaker
Rep Paul Gosar nominates Rep Andy Biggs as a third candidate for speaker to muted applause from the Never Kevin group.
Voting now underway
Voting is now underway as Kevin McCarthy faces off against fellow Republican Andy Biggs and Democrat Hakeem Jeffries.
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