House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., unexpectedly withdrew from the race Thursday to succeed John Boehner as House speaker, apparently due to intense scrutiny from anti-establishment conservatives, reported The Washington Post.
"We need a fresh face. I don't want making voting for speaker [on the House floor] a tough one. If we're going to be strong, we're going to be 100 percent united.... Let's put the conference first," McCarthy said, adding that he would remain as majority leader.
McCarthy announced his decision during a closed-door meeting of House Republicans that had been called to select a new speaker ahead of the official House floor vote scheduled for Oct. 29. McCarthy was expected to easily win the preliminary vote, but instead, he used his speaking time to announce his withdrawal from the race.
"He asked for the floor, and it was a two-minute speech," said Rep. Robert Pittenger, R-N.C., reported The Huffington Post. "He said the country is asking for a new face, new leadership, and he said I'm going to pull out. I'm not the right person for this job. I think we're all in shock."
Boehner, who is poised to resign at the end of the month, subsequently postponed the vote.
A source close to McCarthy told CNN that the decision to withdraw came down to "numbers, pure and simple."
"He had the votes to win the conference vote, but there just wasn't a path to 218" votes needed on the House floor to win the speakership.
McCarthy said in a statement: "Over the last week it has become clear to me that our Conference is deeply divided and needs to unite behind one leader. I have always put this Conference ahead of myself. Therefore I am withdrawing my candidacy for Speaker of the House. I look forward to working alongside my colleagues to help move our Conference's agenda and our country forward."
McCarthy's bid certainly wasn't helped by recent comments applauding the House Select Committee on Benghazi for damaging the poll numbers of Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton.
"That wasn't helpful. I could've said it much better," McCarthy said Thursday, acknowledging that the comments had become a "distraction from the committee" and had factored into "the decision as well."
Republicans are now set to search for a new speaker candidate, with Rep. Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania reportedly putting his name forward on Thursday, according to HuffPo.
Rep. Danile Webster of Florida has also announced his bid for the position, and was endorsed by the conservative House Freedom Caucus on Wednesday, reported The Hill.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, who jumped into the speaker race late last week, said he was "absolutely stunned, surprised and shocked" by McCarthy's announcement. He said he would continue to campaign for the top House position and said "we need to find somebody that our whole body can unite behind and do what were elected to do," according to CNN.
