Kevin McCarthy ousted as US House speaker
Hard-right Republicans have removed Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the United States House of Representatives. His removal comes after a successful,bipartisan effort to avoid a government shutdown.
McCarthy’s ousting is the first in US history.
The vote to oust McCarthy followed a motion to vacate the chair from the Florida Republican congressman Matt Gaetz. After McCarthy’s Republican allies failed to block the motion from moving forward, a final vote was held on Tuesday afternoon. Amid gasps from members in the tense chamber, eight hard-right Republicans joined 208 Democrats in supporting McCarthy’s removal, as 210 Republicans tried and failed to keep the speaker in place. McCarthy needed a simple majority of voting members to keep his gavel but failed to cross that threshold.
“The resolution is adopted,” congressman Steve Womack, the Arkansas Republican who presided over the session, announced after the vote.
“The office of speaker of the House of the United States House of Representatives is hereby declared vacant,” he said.
McCarthy said Tuesday night that he would not run for speaker again, clearing the way for a new Republican speaker if the party members can reach a consensus.
Republicans plan to hold a vote for a new speaker next Wednesday, following a closed-door meeting on 10 October to discuss different candidates, Reuters reported.
