All the things the House can’t do without a speaker

The House of Representatives is without a speaker for the second time this year, grinding many functions of the legislative body to a halt.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was ousted as House speaker in a historic 216-210 vote, which saw eight Republicans join all present Democrats in the motion to vacate. Following the vote, McCarthy said he would not seek the speakership again, setting up a battle in the House Republican Conference. House Republicans plan on voting for a new House speaker on Oct. 11, meaning the body will be without its constitutionally mandated leader.

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Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) is serving as speaker pro tempore of the House until a new speaker can be elected, but he is only an interim leader of the chamber and does not have the same powers as an elected speaker. McHenry was selected as speaker pro tempore after being at the top of McCarthy’s secret list for succession to the speakership.

No legislative function can occur on the House floor until a new speaker is elected. No votes or any other basic functions can occur on the floor of the House until the election has been resolved.

While this does not cause any immediate problems, a prolonged speaker election could cause trouble, with the government set to shut down if spending bills are not approved by Nov. 16. The longest vacancy the House has had for a speakership dates back to the 1800s, when the chamber took 133 ballots from December 1855 to February 1856 to elect a speaker.

Despite the House floor being effectively paralyzed by the lack of a House speaker, committees may continue to work and function without a speaker. The current situation is less harmful to House functions outside of the floor than the vacant speakership was in January because a rules bill outlining how the 118th Congress will function has been passed, unlike nine months ago.

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Republicans considering taking up the speaker’s gavel include House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA), Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK), and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH). A candidate forum is scheduled to be held on Oct. 10 for the House GOP, ahead of the conference deciding whom to nominate for speaker.

The election of a House speaker requires a simple majority of the House, which took 15 ballots for McCarthy in January.