House Republicans on Tuesday voted 188-31 by secret ballot to nominate House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) for speaker of the House, according to three sources in the room.
Why it matters: With Republicans on track to retake the House majority, the vote means McCarthy has cleared a major hurdle on his still-tenuous path to becoming speaker in the new Congress. But he still fell far short of the 218 votes he needs on the House floor come January.
