Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) reportedly voted for former President Trump as House Speaker on Thursday, as the chamber took its eighth vote in three days to pick a Speaker.
Gaetz, a vocal opponent of Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) candidacy for Speaker, defied his colleagues and voted for Trump on the seventh ballot. Rep. Byron Donalds was elected by the remaining 19 lawmakers (R-Fla.).
.@RepMattGaetz votes for former President Donald Trump for Speaker of the House. #118thCongress pic.twitter.com/VCQgi0bgLA
— CSPAN (@cspan) January 5, 2023
Gaetz later posted a photograph of Trump holding the Speaker’s gavel.
Although there was no change in the seventh vote, as the same 20 far-right members remained divided from the rest of the Republican Party, many members looked to be making headway in discussions with McCarthy overnight.
In spite of this, Gaetz appeared to be standing firm in his anti-McCarthy stance.
The action comes after anti-McCarthy Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) stated on Wednesday night that she could nominate Trump for the job.
Despite Gaetz and Boebert’s apparent support, Trump has endorsed McCarthy’s quest for Speaker and pushed Republican colleagues to support the California congressman.
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