US House elects Kevin McCarthy as House speaker

• McCarthy was chosen House speaker in the early hours of Saturday morning.
• It was the longest campaign in 164 years for a House speaker.
• The election marks the beginning of the 118th Congress.

Kevin McCarthy was chosen House speaker in the wee hours of Saturday morning, capping days of arduous talks and unsuccessful votes.

This is a significant triumph for the California Republican and places him in a powerful position as the leader of the GOP majority in the house.

In what turned out to be the longest campaign in 164 years, McCarthy had to whittle away at resistance from a group of hardcore conservatives in order to win the gavel.

McCarthy and his allies made a number of concessions to conservatives in order to appease their opponents.

This annoyed moderates who were afraid that the concessions may make it more difficult for the new GOP majority to govern efficiently.

The difficulty McCarthy had in securing votes may serve as a preview of the difficulties he may encounter in the future as he attempts to bring his members together as Republicans focus on enacting their agenda.

McCarthy has denied that idea, but the deal-making he engaged in looks to be leaving him with a weaker hand to play in his new position of responsibility.

The speaker election emphasized differences between conservatives and moderates over the course of several days, starting on the first day of the 118th Congress.

Legislators were on edge waiting to see how a few last holdouts would vote during the hectic and tense moments on the House floor during the final hours before McCarthy was elected.

McCarthy was expected to prevail in the 14th round of voting, according to some prominent Republicans, but eventually he came up short.

Republicans moved to adjourn after that decision caused chaos in the House. However, Republicans abruptly changed their votes to allow McCarthy to advance to the 15th ballot, when he ultimately prevailed.

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