House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) may have secured the GOP nomination for the Speaker of the House, but his path to the position continues to be mired by obstacles. Despite losing to McCarthy for the GOP Conference's nomination last month, challenger Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) announced his candidacy for the speakership, threatening to upend McCarthy's plans to assume the role, CNN reports.
To secure the position, McCarthy needs at least 218 votes, meaning he can only stand to lose four votes from the GOP's 222 seats. If he cannot win 218 votes on the first ballot, the vote will continue for multiple polls until someone does, a rare outcome that hasn't happened in about a century, per CNN.
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