Your Wednesday Briefing: Chaos in the Race for U.S. House Speakers

In addition, China is threatening countermeasures against travel restrictions.

ImageThe 118th Congress took office Tuesday McCarthy lost the first two and second votes to become Speaker of the House as the 118th US Congress took office yesterday It was the first time the House had failed to elect a speaker in the first roll-call vote since 1923. The third vote for new leadership is about to begin as we send out this bulletin. You can follow live updates here.

In the second vote, existing anti-McCarthy votes consolidated behind founding member Jim Jordan of Ohio of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus. (Jordan backs McCarthy.) McCarthy got zero votes.

The mutiny was led by ultra-conservative lawmakers who for weeks kept their vow to oppose McCarthy. The defection of 19 Republican lawmakers in both votes was a chaotic display of disunity within the party as it begins its first week in office in the House.

Background: McCarthy, a Republican from California, was once the front-runner for Speaker of the House, one of the most powerful positions in the US government. But a far-right faction of his party opposed him, even though he made a series of concessions.