Speaker of the House

The Speaker is the only congressional leader named in the Constitution, which says simply that the House shall choose its Speaker. The House elects a Speaker at the start of each Congress by a majority of members voting for a named person, and in practice each party nominates its leader and the majority's nominee wins. The Constitution does not require the Speaker to be a member of the House, though every Speaker has been. Frederick Muhlenberg of Pennsylvania was the first, in 1789. Under the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, the Speaker is second in line after the Vice President.

The Speaker presides over the House, interprets its rules through the parliamentarian, refers bills to committee, appoints the majority members of the Rules Committee and of conference committees, controls which bills reach the floor, and recognizes members to speak. The Speaker also leads the majority party, sets its legislative agenda, and raises money for its members. Powerful Speakers have included Henry Clay, Thomas Reed, Joseph Cannon, whose near-dictatorial control led to a 1910 revolt that stripped some of the office's powers, Sam Rayburn, the longest-serving, and Nancy Pelosi, the first woman, elected in 2007.

A Speaker can be removed at any time by a majority vote on a motion to vacate the chair. Under House rules adopted in January 2025, such a motion can be forced to a vote only if offered by a member of the majority party with at least eight majority-party cosponsors. That had never happened until October 3, 2023, when eight Republicans joined Democrats to remove Kevin McCarthy, leaving the House unable to legislate for three weeks until Mike Johnson was elected. McCarthy had needed fifteen ballots to win the post that January, the most since before the Civil War. The episodes showed how a narrow majority can make the most powerful position in Congress precarious.