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“Time to Pick a New Speaker? Here’s What House Republicans Need to Know

The House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, and one of its most important roles is to elect a speaker. The speaker of the House is the chamber’s leader, responsible for setting the legislative agenda and for maintaining order during floor debates. The current speaker of the House is Nancy Pelosi, who has been in office since 2019. In the wake of the 2020 election, the Republican Party, which holds the majority in the House, will soon be required to pick a new speaker to replace Speaker Pelosi. It is an important decision: the speaker of the House influences the policy direction of the entire chamber. But how does the process of selecting a new speaker actually work? First, it begins with the members of the Republican caucus. This is the group of Republicans that holds the majority in the House and decides on the agenda for the chamber. The caucus will first select a nominee for speaker who must then be accepted by the wider House membership. Once the nominee is selected, the speaker-elect is invited to address a joint session of Congress. In this speech, the speaker-elect will outline his or her agenda and vision for the House. This speech typically contains the speaker’s priorities as well as their plans for the chamber. If the speakership succeeds to the floor, the House will hold a roll-call vote where every member of the chamber will cast a ballot to decide the new speaker. The individual receiving the most votes – typically 218 out of 435 – is chosen as the new speaker. This is why it is important for the Republicans to have a unified voice in the House: if the Republican caucus splits too far apart, they will not have the numbers necessary to secure the majority of votes needed to elect their candidate. Ultimately, it is an important time for House Republicans, who must decide on a new speaker. The choice will not only have a major impact on policy in the current term, but will also set the tone for subsequent ones. Let’s hope that the Republican caucus is able to come to a unified agreement on the House’s next leader.