The speaker of the United States House of Representatives,commonly known as the speaker of the House or House Speaker,is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The office was established in 1789 by Article I,Section II,of the U.S. Constitution. By custom and House rules,the speaker is the political and parliamentary leader of the House and is simultaneously its presiding officer,de facto leader of the body's majority party,and the institution's administrative head. Speakers also perform various other administrative and procedural functions. Given these several roles and responsibilities,the speaker usually does not personally preside over debates—that duty is instead delegated to members of the House from the majority party—nor regularly participate in floor debates.
Nancy Patricia Pelosi is an American politician who served as the 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2019 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party,she was the first woman elected as U.S. House Speaker and the first woman to lead a major political party in either chamber of Congress,leading the House Democrats from 2003 to 2023. A member of the House since 1987,Pelosi currently represents California's 11th congressional district,which includes most of San Francisco. She is the dean of California's congressional delegation.
The United States Constitution provides that each "House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings," therefore each Congress of the United States,upon convening,approves its own governing rules of procedure. This clause has been interpreted by the courts to mean that a new Congress is not bound by the rules of proceedings of the previous Congress.
Steny Hamilton Hoyer is an American politician and retired attorney who has served as the U.S. representative for Maryland's 5th congressional district since 1981. He also served as House Majority Leader from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2019 to 2023. Hoyer first attained office through a special election on May 19,1981. As of 2023,he is in his 22nd House term. His district includes a large swath of rural and suburban territory southeast of Washington,D.C. Hoyer is the dean of the Maryland congressional delegation and the most senior Democrat in the House.
James Enos Clyburn is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 6th congressional district. First elected in 1992,Clyburn represents a congressional district that includes most of the majority-black precincts in and around Columbia and Charleston,as well as most of the majority-black areas outside Beaufort and nearly all of South Carolina's share of the Black Belt. Since Joe Cunningham's departure in 2021,Clyburn has been the only Democrat in South Carolina's congressional delegation.
Alexandra Corinne Pelosi is an American journalist,documentary filmmaker,and writer. She is a daughter of Nancy Pelosi,the former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives,and Paul Pelosi.
Kevin Owen McCarthy is an American politician who served as the 55th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from January to October 2023. A member of the Republican Party,he was the U.S. representative for California's 20th congressional district from 2007 until his resignation in 2023.
The reading clerk of the United States House of Representatives reads bills,motions,and other papers before the House and keeps track of changes to legislation made on the floor. During the vote for Speaker at the beginning of each Congress,or when the electronic voting system fails,the clerk calls the roll of members for a recorded vote.
In the United States House of Representatives,the two major political parties maintain policy and steering committees. Their primary purpose is to assign fellow party members to other House committees,and they also advise party leaders on policy.
The Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE),established by the U.S. House of Representatives in March 2008,is a nonpartisan,independent entity charged with reviewing allegations of misconduct against members of the House of Representatives and their staff and,when appropriate,referring matters to the United States House Committee on Ethics.
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives,also known as floor leaders,are congresspeople who coordinate legislative initiatives and serve as the chief spokespersons for their parties on the House floor. These leaders are elected every two years in secret balloting of their party caucuses or conferences:the House Democratic Caucus and the House Republican Conference. Depending on which party is in power,one party leader serves as majority leader and the other as minority leader.
On October 29,2015,during the 114th United States Congress,an election for speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives was necessitated by the impending resignation of John Boehner,set for October 30. Boehner was the first speaker to resign in the middle of a Congressional term since Jim Wright in 1989.
On January 3,2019,the first day of the 116th United States Congress and two months after the 2018 U.S. House elections,the incoming members of the U.S. House of Representatives held an election for speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. This was the 126th U.S. speaker election since the office was created in 1789.
Cheryl Lynn Johnson is an American government official who served as the 36th Clerk of the United States House of Representatives from February 26,2019,to June 30,2023. Between January 3,2023,and January 7,2023,Johnson served as the acting presiding officer of the House while the election of a speaker for the 118th United States Congress was deadlocked until Kevin McCarthy was elected after 15 ballots.
The United States House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic,formerly the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis,is a bipartisan United States House of Representatives select subcommittee that was created to provide congressional oversight of the Trump administration's response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. The Select Subcommittee was established under H.Res.935 during the 116th Congress. Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced on April 2,2020,that the committee would oversee the $2.2 trillion economic stimulus/rescue legislation enacted by Congress. The Act created a $500 billion bailout fund for U.S. industry and is the largest economic emergency legislation in U.S. history. It was established as a special investigatory subcommittee under the House Oversight Committee.
On January 3,2021,the 1st day of the 117th Congress and 2 months after the 2020 U.S. House elections,the incoming members of the U.S. House of Representatives held an election for speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. It was the 127th U.S. speaker election since the office was created in 1789.
At the opening of the 118th United States Congress,the members-elect of the House of Representatives elected in the 2022 midterms held an election for its speaker,marking the 128th speaker election since the office was created in 1789. It began on January 3,2023,and concluded in the early morning hours of January 7 when Kevin McCarthy of California,leader of the House Republican Conference,won a majority of votes cast on the fifteenth ballot. After the longest speaker election since December 1859 –February 1860,McCarthy won the speakership by making concessions to Republican Party hardliners,who had refused to support him through several rounds of voting,finding him too weak and untrustworthy.
The magic minute,or leadership minute,is a custom in the United States House of Representatives that allows party leaders to speak for as long as they wish,in contrast with other members,who have to adhere to strict time limits. The convention was notably used by Nancy Pelosi and Kevin McCarthy in 2018 and 2021,respectively,to speak for records of over eight hours.
The 119th United States Congress is the next meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government,composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It is scheduled to meet in Washington,D.C.,from January 3,2025,to January 3,2027,beginning its term during the final weeks of Joe Biden's presidency. The elections of November 2024 will decide control of both houses.
Susan Cole is an American government official who serves as a Reading Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. She has held the position since 2007,has worked as a staffer in the Office of the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives since 2003,and has been a staffer of the United States House of Representatives since 1994.
