After 12 rounds of ballots and literally thousands of votes, when the House met again on Friday morning to choose a Speaker, something happened for the first time.
Kevin McCarthy flipped a vote.
Not only that, McCarthy flipped 14 votes—two-thirds of the initial group of 21 that had been voting against him.
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Most encouraging for the Speaker hopeful? The group included Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC), who previously was a member of the “Never Kevin” faction, as well as Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), one of the most vocal holdouts.
Still, it wasn’t enough to finally hand McCarthy the Speaker’s gavel. Seven Republicans still voted against him on the 12th round, including lawmakers who are seen as unlikely to ever vote for him, such as Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Lauren Boebert (R-CO).
The GOP leader will only win—and the House’s tortured state of purgatory only put to an end—if he gets all but four Republicans to vote for him. It’s far from a sure thing: with only his most dug-in opposition remaining, it could be harder for McCarthy to flip the final three votes than the first 14.
But the jailbreak that unfolded on Friday provided the jolt of momentum that McCarthy had desperately needed after four days of a stalemate had threatened to derail his ambitions for the speakership.
It was the product of furious negotiating between McCarthy, his allies, and the holdout faction, which had taken place from Wednesday into Friday morning. Specific details of any compromise remained unclear—aside from the fact that hardline conservatives believed it to be significantly favorable to them.
“We’re at a turning point,” Perry tweeted after his vote. “I’ve negotiated in good faith, with one purpose: to restore the People’s House back to its rightful owners. The framework for an agreement is in place, so in a good-faith effort, I voted to restore the People’s House by voting for [McCarthy].”
Based on statements from lawmakers and news reports, it’s likely McCarthy has agreed to cede a remarkable amount of power, on top of promising to support lowering defense spending.
As part of any compromise, McCarthy would likely place his detractors—those who had just dragged him through the most hellish leadership vote since the Civil War—in positions of influence on the most important committees.
McCarthy may not have bought himself the Speakership on Friday, but he did buy himself time.
With their opposition now limited to just over a half-dozen lawmakers, GOP leadership clearly believes it can bring enormous pressure to bear on such a small group, and secure at least some of their votes.
The energy on the floor was palpable Friday as pro-McCarthy Republicans stood in applause at each flipped vote. Many of the McCarthy detractors characterized their votes as being “good faith” showings—a sort of subtweet to McCarthy’s corner that rules changes can move this subset of members, but that nothing is guaranteed until it’s over.
McCarthy clapped along, shaking several hands at the end as he once again huddled with his closest allies, like Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD), among others. Some of the Never Kevin faction continued to chat in the back of the room, though without as much of a crowd as they’ve seen in previous days.
Still, the Never Kevin faction had some fun with their continued chaos. Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-MT), for one, during his vote shouted he was voting for “Kevin,” before taking a long pause to vote for “Kevin Hern,” who Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) again nominated.
It’s unclear when Republicans will proceed with the inevitable 13th ballot, but members on both sides of the aisle have been warned of possible weekend votes. And absences could take a toll: Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-TX) has traveled home to be with his wife and child, who was born only four days ago. Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) was not present for his roll call on the 12th ballot after being absent Thursday for a medical procedure, but is reportedly traveling back to Washington Friday.
