Paralyzed U.S. House reconvenes for 2nd day of speaker election amid political stalemate

Photo taken on Jan. 3, 2023 shows the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

It was the first time a House speaker hadn't been elected on the first ballot in 100 years. U.S. President Joe Biden reacted to the political drama surrounding the House speakership vote on Wednesday morning, saying that "it's embarrassing the way it's taking so long."

WASHINGTON, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- Members of a paralyzed U.S. House of Representatives reconvened Wednesday noon to elect a new speaker after a chaotic opening day of the divided 118th Congress.

U.S. Congressman Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California, failed to secure enough votes on three ballots on Tuesday afternoon because about 20 House lawmakers of his own party picked other candidates for speaker.

It was the first time a House speaker -- who maintains order, manages its proceedings, and governs the administration of its business on the lower chamber's floor -- hadn't been elected on the first ballot in 100 years.

The fourth round of voting is underway. The 435-seat House will have to vote on and on until a speaker is elected with a majority of votes. Before that, members cannot be sworn in and committees cannot be formed with the rest of the business stalled.

U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, reacted to the political drama surrounding the House speakership vote on Wednesday morning, saying that "it's embarrassing the way it's taking so long."

"How do you think this looks to the rest of the world?" Biden told reporters at the White House before leaving for Hebron, Kentucky. "It's not a good look. It's not a good thing."

McCarthy has the support of most House Republicans and former U.S. President Donald Trump but a handful of hardliners have opposed his bid to lead the conference by arguing that he is insufficiently conservative while refusing to decentralize the speaker's power.

Trump reaffirmed his support for McCarthy on Wednesday morning, urging Republican House members to elect him and not to "turn a great triumph into a giant &embarrassing defeat" in a social media post.

Photo taken on Jan. 3, 2023 shows the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., the United States. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

U.S. Congressman Matt Gaetz, a longtime Trump supporter and one of the House Republicans seeking to doom McCarthy's quest to take the gavel, responded in a statement that the former Republican president's suggestion "changes neither my view of McCarthy nor Trump nor my vote."

McCarthy told reporters that "I think we'll get to 218," as he appeared on Capitol Hill on Wednesday morning despite no clear path yet to break the historic political statement.

Republicans flipped the House in the 2022 midterm elections while Democrats held onto their majority in the Senate.

The divided Congress convened for the first time on Tuesday, with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris presiding over the opening of the 100-people upper chamber in which Democrats control 51 seats versus 49 for Republicans.

Chuck Schumer from New York and Mitch McConnell from Kentucky remain the Senate majority leader and minority leader, respectively.