Republican leader Kevin McCarthy has become the 55th person to serve as speaker of the US House of Representatives. The 57-year-old was elected as the House Speaker after 15 rounds of voting over four days.

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Who is Kevin McCarthy?

Kevin McCarthy’s Age and family

McCarthy was born on January 26, 1965, in Bakersfield, California. He is 57 years old. His father Owen McCarthy was an assistant city fire chief and his mother Roberta Darlene was a homemaker.

He and his wife, Judy, have two children. McCarthy and his family are lifelong residents of Bakersfield. In October 2015, he was accused of having an affair with Representative Renne Ellmers.

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Career

McCarthy graduated with a Bachelor of Science in marketing from California State University, Bakersfield in 1989. He earned a Master of Business Administration in 1994.

McCarthy served as House Majority Leader under John Boehner and Paul Ryan from 2014 to 2019. He is in his seventh term in the House, having previously represented California’s 22nd congressional district in 2007 and 2013 and the 23rd district since that year.

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Previously, McCarthy headed the Young Republican National Federation and Young Republicans. He was a member of the California State Assembly from 2002 to 2006, serving as minority leader for the last two years. McCarthy was elected to Congress in 2006.

Before being elected as the House Speaker, he was the Republican Chief Deputy Whip from 2009 and 2011. In 2011, when Republicans took control of the House, McCarthy was elected majority whip and served in that capacity until August 2014. He replaced outgoing majority leader Eric Cantor, who lost his primary.

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In January 2019, McCarthy was appointed minority leader, becoming the first Republican from California to do so after the Republican Party’s majority leader lost in the 2018 midterm elections and Speaker Paul Ryan announced his retirement. He continuously defended former President Donald Trump during his majority and minority leadership tenures.

Net worth

According to ghgossip.com, Kevin McCarthy has an estimated net worth of $95 million. He reportedly takes a monthly remuneration of $1 million.