East Central Reporter

U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.) is among the 20 holdouts preventing U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Cailf.) from rising to become Speaker of the House.

Miller’s office refused to comment on the vote noting the situation was fluid. A seventh vote is expected for the evening of Jan. 5. The congresswoman herself has not made a public statement.

The holdouts are being represented by U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.).

“We will not be voting for Kevin McCarthy today,” Gaetz said at a press conference.

“Take no joy in this discomfort that this moment has brought, but if you want to drain the swamp, you cannot put the biggest alligator in charge of the exercise. I am a Florida man and I know of what I speak. We offered Kevin McCarthy terms last evening that he rejected. We sought a vote in the first quarter of the 118th Congress on term limits. He refused. We wanted a budget from the Republican Study Committee that balances on the floor in the first quarter. He refused. We wanted the border plan that the Texas delegation put together on the floor. He refused time and again. His viewpoints, his positions, they shift like sands underneath you."

Gaetz has suggested the only way the group will vote for McCarthy is through a power-sharing agreement in which members of their delegation are given powerful committee chairmanships and only after adopting new rules in the 118th House that will diminish the Speaker’s role.  

Miller and others voted against seating McCarthy as Speaker. Instead, they at first put their support behind U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) before switching to U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.).

McCarthy has held leadership positions in the U.S. House since 2009 and served as House Minority Leader until 2023.

The holdouts accuse McCarthy of kowtowing to lobbyists' interests.

McCarthy has failed to achieve grasp the 218 votes needed to secure the speakership despite undergoing six votes for the post.

He is now being challenged by Donalds who joined the breakout group on the third vote. He received all 20 votes in the most recent count.

McCarthy has continued to lose votes. He initially received 203 votes but as of the latest count is only receiving 201 votes.

“It’s time to find a Speaker that will unify the GOP,” U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo), said, according to Center Square.

A video of the vote was released by Forbes on Twitter.

In a voice vote, Miller’s name is called, along with the rest of the Millers in Congress.

“Miller of Illinois?” an announcer asks.

“Jim Jordan,” Miller can be heard saying as a murmur spreads through the body.

Miller was the fourth to vote for another candidate over McCarthy.