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He also helped ensure the passage of several domestic measures and foreign assistance programs advocated by Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman. As required by the Constitution, the Speaker is elected by a roll call vote held on the first day of every new session of Congress, which begins in January following the November midterm election that's held every two years. As the highest-ranking member of the House, the Speaker is elected by a vote of the members of the House.
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Perhaps most clearly indicating the importance of the position, the Speaker of the House stands second only to the Vice President of the United States in the line of presidential succession. Along with the title and duties, the Speaker of the House continues to serve as the elected representative from his or her congressional district. The Speaker’s role within the House has also seen significant changes since 1789. Under the guidelines of Jefferson’s manual, which serves as a foundation for the House’s rules, the Speaker originally didn’t talk on the House floor during debates and only spoke when conducting parliamentary manners. In these positions, the Speaker plays a key role as negotiator between the House and president and with the Senate, and as the point person for the House’s fundamental role in originating and passing legislation and controlling “the power of the purse” to tax and spend taxpayer money. The Constitution is vague about the speaker, dictating only that members “shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers.” One need not be an elected member of the House to serve as speaker, which is why the last speaker’s election in January saw former President Donald Trump being nominated for the position.
Speaker pro tempore
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The current controversy over the Speaker of the House of Representatives has highlighted that position’s role as one of the most important elected officials in Washington. But little was spelled out in the Constitution about the position and how the House selected the Speaker. It gained national prominence in the early 1800s when Henry Clay of Kentucky sat in the chair. “The Speakership they envisioned resembled a parliamentary referee who would rule on floor debate but do little else,” according to the historian’s office. Albert's successor, Democrat Tip O'Neill, was a prominent speaker because of his public opposition to the policies of President Ronald Reagan.
Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
The speaker is responsible for ensuring that the House passes legislation supported by the majority party. In pursuing this goal, the speaker may use their influence over the Rules committee, which is in charge of the business of the House. Historically, there have been several controversial elections to the speakership, such as the contest of 1839. In that case, even though the 26th United States Congress convened on December 2, the House could not begin the speakership election until December 14 because of an election dispute in New Jersey known as the "Broad Seal War".
During the mid-1970s, the power of the speakership once again grew under Democrat Carl Albert. The Committee on Rules ceased to be a semi-independent panel, as it had been since 1910. Moreover, in 1975, the speaker was granted the authority to appoint a majority of the members of the Rules Committee. Meanwhile, the power of committee chairmen was curtailed, further increasing the relative influence of the speaker. Also, the Speaker didn’t get a clear right to vote on all House matters until 1850. The House had changed its rules in 2019 to require a majority of its representatives to move to motion to vacate to the floor, but the traditional motion of vacate was added back in January 2023 during the contentious voting over the Speaker’s position.
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After the Republicans lost House seats in 1998 (although retaining a majority) he did not stand for a third term as speaker. His successor, Dennis Hastert, had been chosen as a compromise candidate since the other Republicans in the leadership were more controversial. Hastert played a much less prominent role than other contemporary speakers, being overshadowed by House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and President George W. Bush. On the floor of the House, the presiding officer is always addressed as "Mister Speaker" or "Madam Speaker", even if that person is serving as speaker pro tempore.
After the 1998 midterm elections where the Republicans lost seats, Gingrich did not stand for re-election. The next two figures in the House Republican leadership hierarchy, Majority Leader Richard Armey and Majority Whip Tom DeLay chose not to run for the office. The chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, Bob Livingston, declared his bid for the speakership, which was unopposed, making him speaker-designate. It was then revealed, by Livingston himself, who had been publicly critical of President Bill Clinton's alleged perjury during his sexual harassment trial, that he had engaged in an extramarital affair.
Speakers articulate an agenda and explain legislative action to other Washington officials as well as the public. They oversee House committee assignments and collaborate with the powerful House Rules Committee to structure floor debate. Rayburn's successor, Democrat John W. McCormack (served 1962–1971), was a somewhat less influential speaker, particularly because of dissent from younger members of the Democratic Party.
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O'Neill is the longest continuously serving speaker, from 1977 through 1987. Republicans made O'Neill the target of their election campaigns in 1980 and 1982 but Democrats managed to retain their majorities in both years. The table provides a complete list of speakers of the House of Representatives. The Speaker does, however, typically preside over special joint sessions of Congress in which the House hosts the Senate.
Finally, it was agreed to exclude both delegations from the election and a speaker was finally chosen on December 17. The speakership reached its apogee during the term of Republican Joseph Gurney Cannon (1903–1911). He determined the agenda of the House, appointed the members of all committees, chose committee chairmen, headed the Rules Committee, and determined which committee heard each bill.
In the 2006 midterm elections, the Democratic Party regained control of the House of Representatives. Nancy Pelosi was elected Speaker of the House, becoming the first woman to hold the position. For history and trivia buffs, the first Speaker of the House was Frederick Muhlenberg of Pennsylvania.
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