Nancy Pelosi was elected House speaker Thursday afternoon as expected, but not without some Democratic defections — one of whom preferred someone totally unexpected.
A total of 15 Democrats voted for someone other than Pelosi, with three voting "present," per Talking Point Memo's Cameron Joseph. Everyone else voted for candidates who had not actually been nominated, with the most surprising name being tossed out by Rep. Anthony Brindisi (D-N.Y.): he voted for former Vice President Joe Biden.
This vote was counted, and as CBS News' Mark Knoller points out, there's actually no constitutional requirement for a House speaker to even be a member of the House of Representatives, although no non-member has even been elected to that position.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.) also received four votes for speaker, the most votes among any of these Democratic "candidates" who weren't actually in the running for the job. Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) and Rep. Max Rose (D-N.Y.) also voted for Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.)
Not every Pelosi defector had their initial vote against her successfully counted, though: Rep. Jeff Van Drew (D-N.J.) tried to vote for "no," which he isn't actually allowed to do. Politico's Jake Sherman said on Twitter that he told Van Drew months ago that voting "no" isn't possible, but he did so anyway; his vote was later changed to "present."
-
What you need to know about last-minute travelThe Week Recommends You can book an awesome trip with a moment’s notice
-
Saudi Arabia could become an AI focal pointUnder the Radar A state-backed AI project hopes to rival China and the United States
-
Crossword: October 29, 2025The Week's daily crossword
-
Shutdown stalemate nears key pain pointsSpeed Read A federal employee union called for the Democrats to to stand down four weeks into the government standoff
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
