US House Speaker

What’s in today’s article?

• Why in news?
• Who is a Speaker of the House?
• What is the role of the Speaker?
• Why is the Speaker of the House so important?
• How is a Speaker chosen?

Why in news?

• After losing multiple votes for Speaker due to opposition from his own party, Republican leader Kevin McCarthy finally became the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.
• In a five-day-long saga, which was the longest speakership election in 160 years, the California Republican finally managed to garner enough support to win the top job.

Who is a Speaker of the House?

• The US Constitution established the role of Speaker of the House, which oversees the lower chamber of Congress. 
• The Speaker is both traditionally and historically a sitting member of the majority party, though this is not a constitutional requirement.
• Therefore, in addition to leading the House of Representatives, they are also leader of the majority party in the chamber.

What is the role of the Speaker?

Image caption: Functions of speaker

• At a practical level, the Speaker: 
  • sets the House’s legislative agenda, 
  • controls committee assignments, 
  • sets the vote and work calendar, and 
  • is responsible for keeping their party members unified behind major initiatives.
• The Speaker is second in line for the presidency, following the Vice-President, in the event of the President being incapable of continuing in office.

Why is the Speaker of the House so important?

• Depending on the partisan makeup of Congress, they can make or break a US president’s agenda, stymie opposition, and spearhead their party’s biggest legislative initiatives.
• A shrewd and effective Speaker will be able to marshal their members behind their party’s agenda, and control rebellious lawmakers by doling out incentives or punishments.

How is a Speaker chosen?

• No House without a speaker
  • The House of Representatives functions on a two-year cycle, known as a “session.” 
    • The mid-term elections were held in the United States on 8 November, 2022.
    • The new Congress began on 3 January 2023 and Republicans will be in the majority.
  • The very first thing a new session of the House of Representatives must do is vote for a Speaker of the House. 
  • Without that person in place, the chamber cannot move on to any other function, including swearing-in members. 
  • The chamber must continue to hold votes until a Speaker is elected.
• Nomination for Speaker
  • In the weeks after an election, the Republican conference and the Democratic caucus hold an informal vote among their members.
    • This voting is done to decide who they want to nominate to lead their party.
  • But members are not obligated to vote for the party’s chosen candidate.
  • While it has been the tradition for the speaker candidate to be a member of the House, it is not required.
• Voting for post of Speaker
  • The vote for Speaker requires a candidate to receive the support of a majority of the House – 218 votes (out of the 435 members of the House). 
  • The existing leader of the majority party is usually presumed to be the person to assume the speakership.
  • For more than a century, the Speaker of the House was decided on the first vote. 
    • However, this time, a record-making 15 voting rounds were conducted before McCarthy succeeded in acquiring the Speaker’s gavel.

Q1) What is US Congress?

The US Congress is made up of two parts – the House of Representatives and the Senate. There are a total of 535 Members of Congress – 100 serve in the U.S. Senate and 435 serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.Control of these two houses is decided by the midterm election. 

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Q2) How long do members of Congress’ terms last?

Members of the House of Representatives serve two-year terms and are considered for reelection every second year. Senators however, serve six-year terms and elections to the Senate are staggered over even years so that only about 1/3 of the Senate is up for reelection during any election.

Source: Explained | Gaining the gavel: the role of the U.S. House Speaker   |   BBC   |   Indian Express