On January 3rd, the vote for the Speaker of the House for the 118th Congress began in a majority-held Republican House. However, the vote was blocked by a group of 20 hardline Republicans who refused to vote for Senator Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House, dragging out the process until the early hours of January 7th. The margin of 212 Democrats to 222 Republicans made it extremely difficult to reach the 218 required votes, a situation not seen since 1923, when it took 9 ballots to resolve.

The lack of a Speaker of the House meant that legislation could not be passed, congress members could not be sworn in, and the debt ceiling was static and in danger of being reached. Talks of nominating another Republican Representative, such as Steve Scalise or Jim Jordan, or seeking the assistance of Democrats through a moderate Republican, were discussed. Fortunately, some of the 20 Republicans switched their votes, allowing McCarthy to be sworn in and daily functions to resume in Congress.

On January 9th, 2023, the House of Representatives passed a package of laws intending to limit Speaker McCarthy. According to Reuters, this package included the capability of one lawmaker to remove him from his position and limit the national debt, which could lessen his ability to negotiate with President Biden and the Democrat-held Senate. Democrats voiced displeasure at the package, with only one Republican voting with them and one abstaining.