New Congress live updates: What's next after Kevin McCarthy's speakership win
McCarthy finally won the speaker's gavel after historic 15 rounds of voting.
The House Republican leadership standoff ended early Saturday morning with Kevin McCarthy winning the speaker's gavel on a historic 15th vote.
It was the longest such election since 1859.
The drama stretched into a fourth day Friday with three more failed votes to decide on a speaker after 11 others over Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday -- the last one ending in a heated one-vote loss at the hands of holdout Matt Gaetz.
McCarthy had been stymied by a small group of hardliners demanding concessions to reshape how the House is run and legislation it prioritizes.
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VP Kamala Harris swears in new senators
As House Republicans enter the 118th Congress in disarray over who will hold the speaker’s gavel, the Democrat-controlled Senate opened with Vice President Kamala Harris swearing in new members and those who won reelection in November.
Among the new faces in the chamber are Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman, Alabama’s Katie Britt and Missouri’s Eric Schmitt.
Arizona’s Mark Kelly and Georgia’s Raphael Warnock were sworn in for their first full, six-year terms.
Despite losing majority control in the House, Democrats expanded their advantage in the Senate by one seat.
118th Congress underway, House in quorum call
After House Chaplain Margaret Kibben delivered the opening prayer and the full House recited the Pledge of Allegiance, the 118th Congress is officially underway.
The House is now in a quorum call to determine how many members are present on the floor. ABC News expects that number to be 434, after the death of Rep. Donald McEachin, D-Va.
That means Kevin McCarthy will need 218 votes on the House floor to win the speaker's gavel, assuming all members are present and voting.
After establishing a quorum, the speaker election will begin with the nomination of members and nominating speeches.
The vote for speaker -- a voice roll call vote -- is on track to begin closer to the end of the hour.
If McCarthy fails to get 218 votes, the House can move to recess before holding a second vote on electing a speaker.
-ABC News' Benjamin Siegel
Pelosi closes out 117th Congress, Clerk of the House opens 118th
Outgoing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who stepped down last month as Democratic leader, declared the second session of the 117th Congress adjourned just before noon.
Pelosi waved the gavel in the air as she thanked those in the chamber, and stepped down to join her colleagues on the floor -- where she is now just one of 434 members preparing to begin a new session of Congress.
Democratic Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the new chair of the House Democratic Caucus, will be the one to hand the incoming speaker the gavel.
Current Clerk of the House Cheryl L. Johnson opened the 118th Congress at about noon.
-ABC News' Benjamin Siegel
Another GOP lawmaker says he's a 'no' on McCarthy
Rep. Dan Bishop, R-N.C., added his name as another "no" vote against McCarthy Tuesday morning, saying in a statement that the GOP leader has contributed to Washington's dysfunction.
"I came to a broken and dysfunctional Congress to change it. Advancing the long-standing pecking order one notch has no prospect of doing that. Many don't want to change it. I will," he said in a statement.
"Kevin McCarthy is not the right candidate to be Speaker. He has perpetuated the Washington status quo that makes this body one of the most unsuccessful and unpopular institutions in the country. This is not about personality differences or who has 'earned' the position. It's about serving the American people."
Bishop's statement underscores McCarthy's worsening math problem, with lawmakers starting to join the original group of five lawmakers voicing robust opposition to his speakership bid.
Bishop was first elected to Congress in a 2019 special election with the help of the Congressional Leadership Fund -- House Republicans' main super PAC that is affiliated with McCarthy.