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House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy was nominated by House Republicans to serve as Speaker of the House when the new session of Congress starts in January, even as control of the chamber remains unclear.
The California congressman was nominated by 188 – 31, an aide to McCarthy tells NPR.
With some GOP lawmakers voting for his challenger, Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs, a conservative member of the House Freedom Caucus, McCarthy faces a challenge uniting a fractured conference that is still reeling from disappointing midterm election results.
Tuesday’s closed-door caucus vote was the first step on McCarthy’s path to presiding over the House chamber. The California Republican needs 218 votes to be elected in a public vote on the House floor on January 3. The next seven weeks will be a test of his ability to win over those who called for a major leadership shakeup. After McCarthy and other top House Republicans vowed a red wave in the 2022 midterms some conservatives are demanding operational changes to make the legislative process more transparent.
Control of the House is unclear with several races still uncalled a week after the election.
