The 118th session of the U.S. Congress opens Tuesday with all attention focused on whether Congressman Kevin McCarthy of California can secure enough votes from his fellow Republicans to become the speaker of the House of Representatives and second in line to the U.S. presidency.
\nThe 57-year-old McCarthy, who for years has sought to lead the 435-member House, is now tantalizingly close to winning the speakership yet not quite assured of securing the 218-vote majority he needs.
\nRepublicans won a narrow 222-213 majority in nationwide House congressional elections in November and will take control of the chamber from Democrats and outgoing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Democrats, who have been locked in a 50-50 split with Republicans in the Senate the past two years, gained a 51-49 edge in the elections nearly two months ago and will maintain a majority even though Arizona Senator Krysten Sinema later switched from Democrat to independent.
\nMcCarthy, a staunch conservative, won 188 votes in a House Republican caucus in November, and since then has secured more support in his effort to reach the 218-vote majority for the speakership.
\nBut a hard-right group of House Republicans \u2014 five or more \u2014 oppose McCarthy’s bid for the speakership, saying that he has not been devoted enough to the conservative cause.
\nThe dissidents have vowed to vote against McCarthy, which would leave him short of the needed majority because all Democrats almost assuredly will vote for their newly selected party leader, Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York.
\nOver the past several weeks, McCarthy has held numerous conversations with the band of Republicans opposing him to try to secure their support.
\nHe has offered them a variety of changes to the way the House operates or appointment to committees where key legislation is considered. One change will give the small number of dissident Republicans the right to a House vote to declare the House speakership vacant if they disagree with the way McCarthy is handling party policy on legislation or expected investigations of U.S. President Joe Biden and his administration.
\nBut so far, with less than a day before Congress convenes at noon Tuesday, McCarthy’s quest for the speakership hangs in the balance, even though no one has gained any substantial support as an alternative.<\/p>\n