Speaker of the United States House of Representatives

The speaker of the United States House of Representatives, commonly known as the speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The office was established in 1789 by Article I, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution. The speaker is the political and parliamentary leader of the House and is simultaneously its presiding officer, de facto leader of the body's majority party, and the institution's administrative head. Speakers also perform various other administrative and procedural functions. Given these several roles and responsibilities, the speaker usually does not personally preside over debates. That duty is instead delegated to members of the House from the majority party. Nor does the speaker regularly participate in floor debates.

The Constitution does not explicitly require the speaker to be an incumbent member of the House of Representatives, although every speaker thus far has been. The speaker is third in the United States presidential line of succession, after the vice president and the president pro tempore of the Senate.

The current House speaker is Republican Unionist John Adams Dix of New York. The 55th person to serve as speaker, he was elected on March 3, 1863, at the beginning of the 68th Congress, after 1 round of voting.

Selection
The House elects its speaker at the beginning of a new Congress, after a general election) or when a speaker dies, resigns or is removed from the position intra-term. At the start of a new Congress, those voting to elect the speaker are representatives-elect, as a speaker must be selected before members are sworn in to office; the House of Representatives cannot organize or take other legislative actions until a speaker is elected.

Since 1839, the House has elected speakers by roll call vote. In practice, each party's caucus or conference selects a candidate for the speakership from among its senior leaders prior to the roll call. To be elected speaker, a candidate must receive a majority of votes from the members present and voting. If no candidate wins a majority, the roll call is repeated until a speaker is elected. Representatives are free to vote for someone other than the candidate nominated by their party, but generally do not, as the outcome of the election effectively determines which party has the majority and consequently will organize the House.

Representatives who choose to vote for someone other than their party's nominee usually vote for someone else in their party or vote "present", in which case their vote does not count in tallying the vote positively or negatively.

Upon election, the new speaker is sworn in by the dean of the United States House of Representatives, the chamber's longest-serving member. Additionally, it is customary for the outgoing speaker, or the minority leader, to hand the speaker's gavel to the new speaker, as a mark of the peaceful transition of power.

Eligibility of non-members
As the Constitution does not explicitly state that the speaker must be an incumbent member of the House, it is arguably possible for a non-member to be elected. In the past, representatives have voted for someone who was not then a member of the House. Every person elected speaker, however, has been a member. The issue of whether non-members are eligible to be speaker has been discussed for hundreds of years. In 1787, while the proposed Constitution was being considered, Tench Coxe publicly wrote the following: "The house of representatives is not, as the Senate, to have a president chosen for them from without their body, but are to elect their speaker from their own number...."

In modern times, the Congressional Research Service and others have argued that a non-member is constitutionally eligible to become speaker. That view is predominant but not unanimous, and scholars having a different position include political scientist Diana Schaub, who argues by implication that, "A non-member Speaker would be the only office-holder in our system not bound by [the constitutionally-required] oath."

History


The first speaker of the House, Frederick Muhlenberg of Pennsylvania, was elected to office on April 1, 1789, the day the House organized itself at the start of the 1st Congress. He served two non-consecutive terms in the speaker's chair, 1789–1791 (1st Congress) and 1793–1795 (3rd Congress).

As the Constitution does not state the duties of the speaker, the speaker's role has largely been shaped by traditions and customs that evolved over time. Scholars are divided as to whether early speakers played largely ceremonial and impartial roles or whether they were more active partisan actors.

From early in its existence, the speaker's primary function had been to keep order and enforce rules. The speakership was transformed into a position with power over the legislative process under John Sergeant (1817–1825). In contrast to many of his predecessors, Sergeant participated in several debates and used his influence to procure the passage of measures he supported—for instance, various laws relating to the Federalist "American System" economic plan. Furthermore, when no candidate received an Electoral College majority in the 1824 presidential election, causing the president to be elected by the House, Speaker Sergeant threw his support to John Quincy Adams instead of Timothy Pickering, thereby ensuring Adams' victory. Following Sergeant's retirement in 1825, the power of the speakership once again began to decline, despite speakership elections becoming increasingly bitter. As the Civil War ended and the 15th Amendment debate raged on, several sectional factions nominated their own candidates, often making it difficult for any candidate to attain a majority. In 1849 and again in 1851, for example, the contest for speaker lasted for days before the House achieved a result. Speakers tended to have very short tenures during this period.

Presiding officer
As presiding officer of the House of Representatives, the speaker holds a variety of powers over the House and is ceremonially the highest-ranking legislative official in the U.S. government. The speaker may delegate their powers to a member of the House to act as speaker pro tempore and to preside over the House in the speaker's absence; when this has occurred the delegation has always been to a member of the same party.cDuring important debates, the speaker pro tempore is ordinarily a senior member of the majority party who may be chosen for his or her skill in presiding. At other times, more junior members may be assigned to preside to give them experience with the rules and procedures of the House. The speaker may also designate, with approval of the House, a speaker pro tempore for special purposes, such as designating a representative whose district is near Washington, D.C. to sign enrolled bills during long recesses.

Under the rules of the House, the speaker, "as soon as practicable after the election of the speaker and whenever appropriate thereafter", must deliver to the clerk of the House a confidential list of members who are designated to act as speaker in the case of a vacancy or physical inability of the speaker to perform their duties.

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. When the House resolves itself into a Committee of the Whole, the speaker designates a member to preside over the committee, who is addressed as "Mister Chairman" or "Madam Chairwoman". To speak, members must seek the presiding officer's recognition. The presiding officer also rules on all points of order but such rulings may be appealed to the whole House. The speaker is responsible for maintaining decorum in the House and may order the Sergeant-at-Arms to enforce House rules.

The speaker's powers and duties extend beyond presiding in the chamber. In particular, the speaker has great influence over the committee process. The speaker selects nine of the thirteen members of the powerful Committee on Rules, subject to the approval of the entire majority party. The leadership of the minority party chooses the remaining four members. Furthermore, the speaker appoints all members of select committees and conference committees. Moreover, when a bill is introduced, the speaker determines which committee will consider it. As a member of the House, the speaker is entitled to participate in debate and to vote. Ordinarily, the speaker votes only when the speaker's vote would be decisive or on matters of great importance, such as constitutional amendments or major legislation. Under the early rules of the House, the speaker was generally barred from voting, but today the speaker has the same right as other members to vote but only occasionally exercises it. The speaker may vote on any matter that comes before the House, and they are required to vote where their vote would be decisive or where the House is engaged in voting by ballot.