Fifteen votes were needed for Kevin McCarthy to be elected leader of the House of Representatives at 06.30 Saturday morning, Norwegian time. Chaos even with him winning with 216 votes out of 428. It was because several Republicans ultimately chose not to vote. For the first time since Tuesday morning, the United States has a fully functioning Congress with representatives sworn in. – That was easy, huh? I never thought I would get up here, McCarthy joked from the podium after receiving a standing ovation from the audience. – My father always told me: It’s not how you start, but how you finish. And now I must end strongly for the American people. In his speech after the vote, McCarthy emphasized that Congress’s responsibility is above the American people. He talked about openness in the political debate, the strengthening of the FBI and the strengthening of the US’s national borders. – I hope one thing is clear after this week: I never give up. And I make this promise: I will never give up on you, the American people, McCarthy said in the speech. After the speech, the representatives were sworn in, and the 118th Congress was closed. President Joe Biden congratulated McCarthy on the election after the final vote. – I am prepared to work together with republicans when I can. This is a time to govern responsibly and to ensure that we put the interests of American families first, said Biden. The leader of the Democrats in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, made a more pointed comment to McCarthy on Twitter. – Congress leader McCarthy’s dream job could turn into a nightmare for the American people, he wrote. Another defeat tonight In the fourteenth vote, on the night of Saturday, McCarthy was just one vote short of winning. Also then he got 216 votes, but that was only half of a total of 432 votes. McCarthy thus did not have a majority. He failed to get the last rebels in his own party to vote for him in the fifteenth ballot, but he got them to refrain from voting. McCarthy had said in advance that he expected to be elected in the fourteenth ballot. – I have the votes to be elected, said McCarthy on his way out of the hall after voting thirteen. If everyone had voted, McCarthy would have needed 218 votes to get a majority. In ballot number thirteen, on Friday night, McCarthy received 214 votes. Kevin McCarthy (right) got into a heated argument with party colleague Matt Gaetz (from Florida) after McCarthy did not get a majority in the 14th vote for congressional leaders. Photo: CHIP SOMODEVILLA / AFP After the fourteenth vote, the politicians also disagreed on whether they should take a break until Monday. There was an argument on the floor. First, most Republicans voted for a break until Monday with 217 votes. After much drama in the hall and pressure from McCarthy, several dozen changed their vote. They thus voted with the Democrats to continue voting. Thus, there was a fifth and final vote. “No Democrat leader” Saman gave the breakaways a clear message after vote number twelve, according to the New York Times: “There will be no Democrat leader”. – We have the framework for an agreement, which means that we can continue to move forward in good faith, said Scott Perry from Pennsylvania. Friday’s first round of voting was the first time Republican McCarthy received more votes than Hakeem Jeffries, who the Democrats have nominated. Kevin McCarthy when the votes were counted on 6 January. Photo: JON CHERRY / Reuters news spoke to Dusty Johnson, who supports McCarthy, in Congress on Friday morning. He said the wing was in the process of negotiating an agreement. – You have the progress in the political theatre, which is the voices up on the board, and then you have the real progress behind the scenes. – I think most of the members who care about finding success follow the latest things much more closely, he said. Two stands to convince McCarthy have so far been challenged by a group of radical party members. Some of these chose on Thursday to support Byron Donalds from Florida, who voted for McCarthy on Friday. – For the first time in this city in probably 100 years, if not more, the American people have witnessed an assessment process, a legitimate assessment process, about the future of the leadership of the people’s house, Donalds said after the twelfth vote. – It is monumental. Parts of the Republican breakaway group during the twelfth vote on Friday. Photo: Alex Brandon / AP Not all members were present for today’s first round of voting in the House of Representatives, which made it more difficult to secure a victory. Usually, the vote on a new leader is only ceremonial. But due to the narrow majority the Republicans have in Congress, a small group has veto power. “First and foremost against” The last time the members of the House of Representatives needed so many votes to reach a leader was before the American Civil War, i.e. 150 years ago. For many of the opponents, the problem with McCarthy seems personal, says US commentator in Vårt Land, Sigrid Rege Gårdsvoll. – McCarthy and organizations associated with him have campaigned against some of these in the nomination election before this election. Many of them point to a personal antipathy based on things that happened in the election campaign. – Then there are probably many who look at him, who has been the leader of the minority until now, very much as a man from Washington. Has is part of what they are there to fight against.
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Kevin McCarthy is elected as congress leader – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
