LYCOMING COUNTY, Pa. — The United States House still remains without an elected speaker. Last week, Republican Jim Jordan failed to win the majority vote of his own party.
"He withdrew his candidacy, and now you kind of have a free-for-all. There are, at last count, nine different candidates who are putting their names forward," said Ben Kantack, a political science professor at Lycoming College.
Kantack talked about what is happening now with Republican House members.
"They are having kind of a forum today, a closed forum, for the caucus to make their pitch to the Republicans," he said. "At some point, probably this week, they will vote for a candidate to advance to the floor to have a chance to be voted for speaker again."
Another idea being floated around is keeping the temporary speaker, Republican Patrick McHenry, in power until an official vote in January.
"He is kind of there to move business along and preside over the meeting, but he lacks the powers that a formal, officially voted speaker would have. He is like the caretaker," Kantack added.
Kantack says there are positives for giving the temporary speaker more power. For example, passing bills and avoiding a government shutdown in November.
"They averted the last government shutdown; they kind of just put it off with temporary provisions until November. But if there is no speaker or if the temporary speaker is not in power to advance legislation, then if we get to that point in November, then we will have a government shutdown and all those problems it causes," he explained.
Kanatck believes that one of the nine new candidates hoping to be the next speaker must prove to moderate and far-right Republicans that he can govern for both.