With the overturning of the House of Representatives to the Republicans, many believed it would be a simple, honorary vote to bring Kevin McCarthy to power as the Speaker of the House. However, with the division of a few members in the Republican Party, a shocking outcome occurred. McCarthy didn’t have the votes necessary to take the seat. As Democrats watched on, Republicans desperately scrambled to end this impasse so that they could begin performing their duties within the House. The Speaker of the House is needed to begin voting and discussing bills in the House, which means that this stalemate was interrupting these duties and the process of government for our nation. 

McCarthy believed that the red wave would secure his win, despite the fact that some Republican representatives disagreed with his nomination. With only a small margin of Republican representatives coming to pass, these Republicans held much greater power as they halted McCarthy from taking the seat. With multiple ballots already having failed, many wondered what would happen, who would take the seat, and when. 

After a week’s worth of compromising, McCarthy finally secured enough votes to take the seat on the 15th ballot. Many moderate Republicans are unhappy with the demands from radical Republicans that McCarthy agreed to in order to secure his seat. With an already divided government, the division inside the Republican Party may hint at future issues that plague politics.