2021 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election
Updated: 5/20/2026, 7:10:43 PM Wikipedia source
On January 3, 2021, the 1st day of the 117th Congress and 2 months after the 2020 U . House elections, the incoming members of the U . House of Representatives held an election for speaker of the U . House of Representatives. It was the 127th U . speaker election since the office was created in 1789. The incumbent speaker, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, was elected to a 4th (2nd consecutive) term, defeating Republican Kevin McCarthy 216–209, with two votes going to other individuals. As only 427 representatives in the 435-member House cast a vote (due to vacancies, absentees, or members voting present), 214 votes were necessary to win.
Infobox
Candidate
Others
Party
Democratic
Leader's seat
California 12th
Members' vote
2
Percentage
0 %
Tables
2021 election for speaker* denotes incumbent · Election of the speaker
Total votes
Total votes
Party
Total votes
Party
427
Candidate
100
Votes necessary
Votes necessary
Party
Votes necessary
Party
214
Candidate
>50
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Nancy Pelosi* (CA 12) | 216 | 50 | |
| Republican | Kevin McCarthy (CA 23) | 209 | 48 | |
| Democratic | Hakeem Jeffries (NY 8) | 1 | 0 | |
| Democratic | Tammy Duckworth | 1 | 0 | |
| Total votes | 427 | 100 | ||
| Votes necessary | 214 | >50 | ||
References
- Vacant seats were Louisiana's 5th congressional district and New York's 22nd congressional district.
- Heritage Guide to The Constitutionhttps://web.archive.org/web/20120421180046/http://www.heritage.org/constitution#!/articles/1/essays/10/speaker-of-the-house
- CRS Report for Congresshttps://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL30857.pdf
- "John Boehner exit: Anyone can run for House speaker, even you"https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/Decoder/2015/0925/John-Boehner-exit-Anyone-can-run-for-House-speaker-even-you
- historyhttp://history.house.gov/People/Office/Speakers-Multiple-Ballots/
- historyhttps://history.house.gov/Institution/Seniority/Deans-of-the-House/
- constitutionhttps://constitution.laws.com/house-of-representatives/election-of-the-speaker
- USA Todayhttps://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/10/25/nancy-pelosi-run-speaker-again-if-democrats-keep-house-control/6032864002/
- LA Timeshttps://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-11-17/pelosi-embarking-on-what-is-slated-to-be-her-final-turn-as-house-speaker
- AP newshttps://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-kevin-mccarthy-coronavirus-pandemic-db7b9836ca419ab1fed6857663be4736
- "Pelosi faces trickiest speaker election yet as Democrats begin new Congress with slim majority"https://www.foxnews.com/politics/pelosi-speaker-election-new-congress-convenes-slim-democratic-majority
- "Pelosi re-elected speaker despite narrow majority"https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/03/pelosi-speaker-election-454076
- voxhttps://www.vox.com/2021/1/3/22211407/new-117-congress-sworn-in-pelosi-mcconnell
- The Hillhttps://thehill.com/homenews/house/532444-pelosi-wins-speakership-for-fourth-time-in-dramatic-vote
- "Nancy Pelosi reelected speaker Sunday despite narrower majority"https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/03/politics/nancy-pelosi-speaker-vote/index.html