Republican Congressman Kevin McCarthy has been sworn in as US House speaker of the 118th Congress, CNN reports.
After days of deadlock and major concessions, McCarthy secured enough votes to be speaker in the 15th round of voting early Saturday morning. The final tally was 216 votes for McCarthy, 212 for Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries with six representatives voting “present.”
The other members of Congress were also sworn-in, clearing the path for a vote on the House Rules package.
Republicans previously agreed to nominate McCarthy, but his path to the speakership was uncertain after a group of GOP holdouts threatened to derail his bid.
