The House of Representatives voted to vacate the office of the Speaker on Tuesday, October 3, in a historic 216-210 vote, removing Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) from the position. Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) is serving as Speaker Pro Tempore until the House elects a new Speaker.

The House went into recess for the remainder of the legislative week, and will begin the process of electing a new Speaker of the House during the week of October 9. Most analysts expect this process to be contentious and could potentially take many weeks to resolve. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) are among those vying to replace Rep. McCarthy as Speaker. McCarthy announced he will not seek reelection.

Chief among the challenges that will face the House once it sorts out leadership for the remainder of the 118th Congress is the November 17 expiration date of the current continuing resolution keeping federal agencies funded at last year’s levels. Following the unprecedented vacancy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said, “The need for bipartisanship will not change. We’ll need bipartisanship to keep the government open. We will need it to finish the appropriations process.”

FMA will monitor developments in the House closely and will continue to advocate for federal managers throughout this time.