1: kevin mccarthy is currently vying for the position of speaker of the house of representatives, a role which controls the legislative agenda and timetable in the house, as well as who sits on various committees. to secure the position, he needs 218 votes, and he won the republican party’s leader vote with 188 votes. he can only afford to lose four of the republican votes, and no democrats are expected to vote for him. there is opposition from some of the republican party’s right-wing members, such as bob good and matt gaetz, who are part of a faction dubbed the “never kevins”.
2: the vote for the speaker of the house is taking place now, and no business can be undertaken in the house until a candidate has been chosen. kevin mccarthy has had to make a number of concessions in order to try to win over republicans who oppose him, but nine republicans released a letter expressing concern over his concessions. having to hold more than one vote to decide on the speaker would be embarrassing for mr mccarthy and the republican party.
3: kevin mccarthy is fighting to secure enough support from his party to ensure he wins the vote to become the new speaker of the house of representatives. losing more than a few votes from his party would make it impossible for him to win the vote, and no other candidate running for the speakership for the first time has failed to win in the first vote for over 100 years. some may remain wary of mr mccarthy due to his previous stance towards former president donald trump.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-64145106?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA
