McCarthy finally won the speaker's gavel after historic 15 rounds of voting.
The House Republican leadership standoff ended early Saturday morning with Kevin McCarthy winning the speaker's gavel on a historic 15th vote.
It was the longest such election since 1859.
The drama stretched into a fourth day Friday with three more failed votes to decide on a speaker after 11 others over Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday -- the last one ending in a heated one-vote loss at the hands of holdout Matt Gaetz.
McCarthy had been stymied by a small group of hardliners demanding concessions to reshape how the House is run and legislation it prioritizes.
In Friday's first round of voting -- the 12th round overall this week -- several of the Republicans who'd been opposing McCarthy's bid switched their stance.
But it remains unclear whether McCarthy will gain enough support to clinch the gavel. The vote is ongoing.
Responding to Rep. Mike Garcia saying McCarthy has "earned this position," Rep.-elect Matt Gaetz, R-Fla, blasted the bid as "an exercise in vanity" and cast McCarthy as "the LeBron James of special interest fundraising in this town."
"You only earn the position of speaker of the House if you can get the votes. Mr. McCarthy doesn't have the votes," Gaetz said. "He will not have the votes -- and he will not have the votes next week, next month, next year -- ad so one must wonder, madam clerk, is this an exercise in vanity for someone who has done the math, taken the counts, and is putting this institution threw something that absolutely is avoidable?"
Gaetz also drew colleagues that support McCarthy into his attack, prompting Rep.-elect Mike Bost of Illinois to shout at Gaetz, making the case that he wasn't gaining any traction in the debate. Several Republicans then left the chamber while Gaetz continued his nominating speech.
"They believe that Mr. McCarthy has earned the position of speaker of the house because he raised half a billion dollars to get Republicans elected," Gaetz said, as he was interrupted and members walked out.
"Selflessness is not selling shares of yourself to the lobbying core and then doing their bidding at the expense of the American people," Gaetz said. "But there certainly is intent. It's an intent driven almost exclusively by personal ambition, and that ambition is paralyzing the house now."
He ultimately nominated Rep. Jim Jordan, who is supporting McCarthy's bid.
Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo, also in the "Never Kevin" camp, went on to nominate Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla., once again.
-ABC News' John Parkinson
Rep.-elect Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., took time to recognize Friday's second anniversary of the U.S. Capitol attack as he nominated Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., for speaker.
"This body has a unique role in this government," Clyburn said. "What we do and how we do it will determine whether our pursuit toward a more perfect union can continue in earnest. No day in recent history underscores the importance of that pursuit more than Jan. 6. Exactly two years ago today, our resolve was tested when a violent mob of insurrectionists attacked our Capitol, threatened the integrity of this democracy, and undermined our Constitution. The greatness of this country and the resiliency of our democracy were put at peril. But we survived."
Clyburn said Democrats are "offering the people of America a good man who has the best interests of the American people at heart."
For a 12th time, McCarthy was nominated to become House speaker, this time by fellow California Republican Rep.-elect Mike Garcia, who said Republicans are "on the verge of a very important victory."
"This isn't about Kevin McCarthy," Garcia said. "The matters before us are of stupendous magnitude. A federal republic such as ours, it's a dynamically unstable one. It's a wobbly top that's just a few mere revolutions away from falling down at any given moment except for the exertions of men and women who are willing to serve her with pure and selfless intent."
"We must be victorious in this cause, and victory begins with allowing this body to get to work. It begins today," he continued. "We don't hold the majority for bragging rights. We hold the majority to govern responsibly."
Garcia drew boos from Democrats when he mentioned an end to proxy voting, implying they overused the option, though Republicans exercised proxy voting during the pandemic, as well.
"It dawns on me, as I look across the aisle after being here for nearly three years, that I haven't had the pleasure of meeting many of you because you've chosen to stay home and not vote here in person and electing instead to proxy vote," Garcia said. "It's a pleasure to see 212 of you here today."
