California Republican House Representative Kevin McCarthy was elected House Speaker on Jan. 7 after an unprecedented 15 rounds of voting.

Following the recent midterm elections, the Republican Party secured a slim, nine-point majority of 222-213 in the House, making the election of a Republican as House Speaker expected. Despite their majority, demands for a more conservative leader from radical members of the Republican Party divided the voters, complicating McCarthy’s campaign.  

In the initial rounds, as many as 19 Republicans voted against McCarthy. Because of his narrow win over the House, McCarthy could only afford for four party members to defect. The ensuing drawn-out battle to gain enough votes proceeded for four days as the Republicans grappled with each other and negotiated.

Before the final round, McCarthy talked with Republican representatives Matt Gaetz of Florida and Lauren Boebert of Colorado, two far-right Republicans, in hopes of convincing them to give him their votes. After a heated discussion, they voted “present,” which although not directly in favor of McCarthy, lowered the number of votes comprising a majority. McCarthy finally achieved the win with 216 out of 428 votes.

McCarthy’s many setbacks on the road to victory arose due to the polarization within the Republican Party. In recent years, the party has faced increasing internal dissension as more and more members of the far right rise to power and come into conflict with their fellow conservatives. The concessions McCarthy agreed to, which included implementing a rule allowing House Representatives to call a vote to oust the speaker at any time, largely served to empower these extreme members of Congress in order to win over their votes. Other demands McCarthy acquiesced to included expanding the House Rules committee to have more far right members and requiring a bill be posted for 72 hours prior to voting, after Republicans criticized the hasty passage of the $1.7 trillion government spending bill late last year.

The numerous rounds of voting caused a stir among the public, with some finding the situation humorous.

“I think [the election was] entertaining,” upper school United States history teacher James Tate said. “Everyone wants a sense of so-called decorum and wants to proceed in an orderly, standard way with no surprises. I actually think it’s kind of fun, kind of interesting, a bit of a trainwreck. I’m entertained by the whole thing.”

Others, like Civil Discourse Club Officer Sam Parupudi (10), considered the events disheartening. They hope that Congress will come together and act effectively and honestly. 

“I would like to see an act of integrity in the House once again,” Sam said. “The show of integrity I want to see is sticking up for the values that the people who elected [you] wanted you for.”