they will elect a new speaker of the house on february 7, 2018.
they will elect a new speaker of the house on february 7, 2018.
when will they elect a new speaker of the house?
february 7, 2018
to be elected speaker a candidate must receive an absolute majority of the votes cast, as opposed to an absolute majority of the full membership of the housepresently 218 votes, in a house of 435. there have only been a few instances during the past century where a person received a majority of the votes cast, and thus won the election, while failing to obtain a majority of the full membership. it happened most recently in january 2015 (114th congress), when john boehner was elected with 216 votes (as opposed to 218). such a variation in the number of votes necessary to win a given election might arise due to vacancies, absentees, or members being present but not voting. if no candidate wins a majority of the "votes cast for a person by name," then the roll call is repeated until a speaker is elected. multiple roll calls have been necessary only 14 times since 1789; and not since 1923 (68th congress), when a closely divided house needed nine ballots to elect frederick h. gillett speaker. upon winning election the new speaker is immediately sworn in by the dean of the united states house of representatives, the chamber's longest-serving member.
2019 speaker of the united states house of representatives election
following speaker william mccoy's decision not to run for re-election in 2011, smith had been considered a possible frontrunner for the speakership. he lost the 2008 speaker election, in which he was supported by the republicans; by some democrats who (like smith) have since bolted the party; and by republican governor haley barbour by a single vote. the house voted on a new speaker at the start of the 2012 session. a narrow margin of power for either party following the election could force lawmakers to form a coalition in order to elect a new speaker. in the end, however, philip gunn was elected speaker without opposition.
jeff smith (mississippi politician)