Kevin McCarthy’s hopes of becoming the US House Speaker have crushed once again as latest reports suggest that he has lost the third ballot once.
In the third vote, McCarthy received 202 votes, the Democrats’ Hakeem Jeffries bagged 212 votes, while Jim Jordan received 20 votes.
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It is unclear how long this fiasco is set to continue.
McCarthy has himself stated that he will be there until he becomes Speaker.
However, with him losing the third vote, even Republicans who have been supporting him all this while, are not willing to back him further.
Congressman Byron Donalds, who switched sides from McCarthy to Jim Jordan, said, “The reality is Rep. Kevin McCarthy doesn’t have the votes. I committed my support to him publicly and for two votes on the House Floor. 218 is the number, and currently, no one is there. Our conference needs to recess and huddle and find someone or work out the next steps…”
He further added, “but these continuous votes aren’t working for anyone. When the dust settles, we will have a Republican Speaker, now is the time for our conference to debate and come to a consensus.”
This is the first time in around 100 years that the US has not been able to elect a Speaker on the first ballot. However, McCarthy said that he is not giving up anytime soon and will keep going for polls till he emerges as the winner.
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The House is anticipated to hold more votes beginning at noon on Wednesday until a candidate emerges with a majority; it is possible that a new candidate who has not participated in the process could be brought into the fore.
