WASHINGTON — Kevin McCarthy fell just short of a majority in a 13th speaker ballot on Friday, but he has managed to win over some key Republicans, including Freedom Caucus Chair Scott Perry and influential conservative Chip Roy, that showed he was finally starting to turn the tide in his favor.
After four days of gridlock and promises of multiple concessions to Republican hardliners, McCarthy converted another holdout to his side in the latest round, giving him 15 more votes than he had Thursday. But with the GOP holding only a narrow majority in the House, he still likely needs to flip at least two of the six remaining holdouts, depending on absences.
“This is the public show of the momentum we’ve had behind the scenes around the policy and process to deliver a conservative agenda,” McCarthy ally Patrick McHenry of North Carolina said before the 13th round of voting got underway.
