The House of Representatives will soon need to choose a new speaker as one of their most powerful figures. This is because current Speaker Paul Ryan will be retiring at the end of his term. The selection process is far from simple and the House Republicans need to pick a suitable candidate who is willing to take on the role and the responsibility associated with it.
When Ryan was first elected as Speaker of the House in 2015, he was chosen through several closed-door meetings where the House Republicans selected him. This process will now need to be repeated, albeit with a different outcome in the end.
Any representative from either party may nominate another member for Speaker but the process often follows a similar pattern. There is first a closed-door session in the House Conference meeting, a closed-door session in the Steering Committee meeting, and finally a session open to the public on the House floor.
In the conference meeting, all 237 of the House Republicans are able to participate in a private meeting to create a list of potential candidates. The list of names submitted is typically reduced to three candidates. These potential speakers then make their presentations to the Steering Committee in a private session in which they can explain their qualifications and goals for their term.
The committee then submits a report of its recommendation to the full membership of the House of Representatives. This report is then discussed during an open session on the House floor where all 430 members are invited to speak on the potential nomination.
After all of the speeches have been made, voting takes place by both verbal contributions and the casting of ballots. An absolute majority of 218 out of 435 is needed for the nomination to be successful. If it fails, the process will begin again until the perfect candidate is selected.
The House Republicans need to pick a suitable candidate who is willing to take on the responsibility and challenge of being Speaker. The process is far from easy, involving several stages and an absolute majority of votes needed to be successful. It is therefore a crucial part of the legislative cycle that has a massive impact on the overall functioning of the House of Representatives.
