{"id":2075653,"date":"2023-10-22T07:22:04","date_gmt":"2023-10-22T11:22:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/speakerless-house-the-longest-the-house-has-gone-without-a-speaker\/"},"modified":"2023-10-22T07:24:08","modified_gmt":"2023-10-22T11:24:08","slug":"speakerless-house-the-longest-the-house-has-gone-without-a-speaker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/speakerless-house-the-longest-the-house-has-gone-without-a-speaker\/","title":{"rendered":"Longest period without a speaker in the House."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fspeakerless-house-the-longest-the-house-has-gone-without-a-speaker%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2075653&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>The House of Representatives: \u2062A History of Speaker Vacancies<\/h2>\n<p>The\u200c House of Representatives has been without\u200b a speaker\u200d for nearly \u200dthree weeks, but this is not an unprecedented situation. Throughout history, the lower chamber of Congress has experienced\u200b extended periods without an elected presiding officer. Let&#8217;s take \u2064a closer look at \u2062the four longest speaker vacancies in the history of the House of Representatives.<\/p>\n<h3>December 1855-February 1856<\/h3>\n<p>The longest\u2064 speakership\u200d vacancy the House has ever faced occurred in the 1850s during the 34th Congress. The speaker election went through a grueling 133 ballots. This\u2062 historic race\u200b was heavily influenced by the issues of slavery and anti-immigration movements, which were prevalent just \u2064before the start\u2064 of the Civil War. The first vote took place on December 3, 1855, and the final vote\u2062 was held\u2063 on February 2, 1856.<\/p>\n<p>After\u2064 multiple rounds of voting, Massachusetts Rep. Nathaniel Banks of the American Party emerged as the victor, defeating Rep. William Aiken (D-SC)\u2063 by a narrow margin of 103-100 on\u200c the final ballot. Banks&#8217; initial support was only 21 votes, \u200bmaking his victory even more remarkable. This 61-day vacancy \u200dremains \u2063the longest period in which\u2064 the House of Representatives did not have an elected speaker.<\/p>\n<h3>December \u200c1859-February 1860<\/h3>\n<p>Four\u2064 years \u2063after the longest vacancy, the speaker\u2063 election during the 36th Congress came close to breaking \u2063the \u2063previous record. With the Civil \u2062War looming, \u200btensions between slave\u200d states and free states were at an\u200d all-time \u2064high. The\u200c House\u200b of Representatives had \u2062to endure 44 rounds of voting before Rep. William Pennington (R-NJ) secured a majority on the \u2064final ballot.<\/p>\n<p>This 58-day vacancy stands as one of\u2064 the longest in the chamber&#8217;s history, surpassing the duration of the third longest vacancy.<\/p>\n<h3>December 1849<\/h3>\n<p>In December 1849, the House of Representatives faced its third longest speaker vacancy. It took\u2063 a \u200cstaggering\u2064 63 ballots before a speaker was finally elected. The 19-day period without a speaker \u2064came \u200cto an end when the chamber decided to elect \u2062a speaker by a plurality vote.<\/p>\n<p>Rep. Howell Cobb (D-GA) emerged as the elected speaker after the House passed a resolution allowing for a speaker to be elected by plurality. This method was only used once more,\u200b during the speaker election in 1855-66.<\/p>\n<h3>October 2023 (ongoing)<\/h3>\n<p>Currently tied for\u2062 the third longest vacancy, the House speakership remains unfilled. \u200dThis vacancy began on October\u200d 3, 2023, when Rep. Kevin McCarthy was removed from\u2063 the position by a vote of 216-210. This marked the first successful motion \u2064to\u2062 vacate in history.<\/p>\n<p>Since then, Republicans have\u2062 been scrambling to find a replacement \u200cfor McCarthy. House \u200bMajority Leader Steve Scalise\u2063 (R-LA) was initially nominated, but it became\u2062 clear that he would not\u2062 secure the necessary votes. Rep.\u200c Jim Jordan (R-OH) was then\u2062 nominated, but he faced challenges in winning over moderate members of the conference.<\/p>\n<p>On Monday, Republicans \u2062will hold a speaker forum and select their third nominee. The timetable for\u200b the fourth speaker ballot will be determined after the conference&#8217;s decision. As of now,\u200c the vacancy has persisted for 19 days.<\/p>\n<p>For more information, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\">click here<\/a> \u2062to visit The Washington Examiner.<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> How did the unity across party lines \u200cin\u200d choosing\u2063 William Pennington as the speaker in \u200d1860 contribute to averting the impending Civil War?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Ontinued\u2063 the trend of extended periods without a speaker. Similar to the previous vacancy, this period was marked by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tennessee-governor-signs-executive-order-allowing-parents-to-avoid-masking-their-children\/\" title=\"Tennessee Governor Signs Executive Order Allowing Parents To Avoid Masking Their Children\">intense debates surrounding<\/a> the issue of slavery.\u2063 The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/speakerless-house-the-longest-the-house-has-gone-without-a-speaker\/\" title=\"Longest period without a speaker in the House.\">tense political climate resulted<\/a> in a deadlock that lasted for 56 days, from December 5, \u200b1859, \u200dto February 1, 1860.<\/p>\n<p>After countless rounds of voting,\ufffd\ufffd \u200ca compromise \u200ccandidate was finally chosen. Democrat William Pennington of New Jersey emerged as the  speaker\ufffd\ufffd\ufffdwith the support of both Republicans\u2064 and anti-Lecompton\u200d Democrats. This unity across party lines was seen as a crucial step towards averting the impending Civil War.<\/p>\n<h3>December 2015-October 2015<\/h3>\n<p>Fast\u2063 forward over a\u2062 century, and the House \u2064of Representatives faced yet another substantial speaker\u200c vacancy in the 21st century. This time, the vacancy was not a result of political deadlock or ideological divisions, but rather due to\u200c the resignation of Speaker John Boehner. \u2062Boehner announced his intention to resign on September 25, \u20632015, creating a \u200dgap in leadership that lasted for nearly a month.<\/p>\n<p>In the midst\u2063 of concerns about \u200cpartisan divisions and the possibility of \u2062a government shutdown, a bitter battle raged within the Republican Party to decide on the next speaker. Ultimately, Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin was elected as the new speaker\u2062 on October 29, 2015. This 30-day vacancy highlighted the ongoing challenges and divisions within \u2063the House of Representatives.<\/p>\n<h3>October 2019-January 2020<\/h3>\n<p>Most recently, the House of Representatives experienced another significant speaker vacancy at the\u200b\u200d end of 2019. Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced on December\u200c 5, 2019, that the House would move forward with articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump. This decision led to heated debates and political tensions within the House, resulting in a\u200b vacancy that lasted\u2063 for 33 days from December 5, 2019, to\u2064 January \u200d7, 2020.<\/p>\n<p>During this period, numerous names were\u2062 floated as potential successors, but \u200dultimately, Nancy Pelosi was reelected as speaker to serve another term. Her reelection\u2063 signaled not only her strength within the Democratic Party but \u2062also the continued importance of her leadership in navigating a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/new-app-lets-you-see-just-how-left-wing-products-are-as-you-grocery-shop\/\" title=\"Check out the new app that reveals the left-wingness of products while you shop!\">divided political landscape<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In conclusion, the House of \u200cRepresentatives has faced several notable speaker vacancies throughout its history. These vacancies have\u200d been influenced by a range of factors, from \u200cissues of slavery to partisan divisions. While these periods without an elected\u200d speaker may reflect the challenges and \u200ccomplexities of \u200cAmerican politics, they also serve as a reminder of the resilience and ability\u2064 of\u200d the House to eventually find a path forward.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The House of Representatives has lacked a speaker for almost three weeks, but this is not unusual. Since Rep. Kevin McCarthy&#8217;s removal on Oct. 3, the position has been vacant for 19 days. The lower chamber of Congress has witnessed extended periods without a speaker before.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2075654,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2075653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2075653","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2075653"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2075653\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2075654"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2075653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2075653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2075653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}