Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., votes for Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, during the third round of votes for House Speaker on the opening day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023, in Washington.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The House Speaker vote is on its second day, and Illinois Rep. Mary Miller (R) is among the 21 Republicans that are continuing to defy the rest of the party by not voting for Kevin McCarthy.  

Miller represents Illinois’ 15th district and was endorsed by former President Donald Trump for her reelection. Despite praising his support during her campaign, Miller is going against Trump’s calls to embrace McCarthy as speaker. 

 She is joined by other far-right representatives like Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL). Initially, a group of 19 nominated and voted for Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs (R) and then Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan (R). Florida Rep. Byron Donalds (R) joined the group during the third vote and switched from McCarthy to Jordan. The Ohio Republican was not seeking the position and himself voted for McCarthy in every one of his votes. On Wednesday, the group expanded to 21 instead nominated Florida Rep. Byron Donalds (Indiana Rep. Victoria Spartz voted “present” three straight times Wednesday after originally voting for McCarthy on Tuesday.)  

The prolonged speaker vote is stalling the House of Representatives, whose 435 members are not even sworn in for the new Congressional session. Legislation also cannot be voted on until a speaker is elected and the body’s members are sworn into office, effectively putting the body in limbo for the time being. Six separate votes have already been held, with not enough votes for anyone to have a simple majority.  

There are no official rules limiting the number of times the House votes on the next speaker, meaning they vote until a candidate wins a simple majority.  

This is the first time since 1923 that a speaker was not elected during the first ballot, and nine rounds of voting were needed to elect Frederick Gillett. However, this was not the longest speaker vote. In 1856, with clashes between pro-slavery and abolitionist forces, it took two months and 133 rounds of voting to elect Nathaniel Banks as Speaker of the House.  

Miller voted for Jordan for the first three votes on Tuesday and then Donalds for the next three votes on Wednesday. 

“I don’t think anyone from Illinois would be surprised by that vote,” Miller told CNN’s Manu Raju. 

Miller has been the center of controversy in the past for seemingly calling the Dobbs v. Jackson Supreme Court decision a “victory for white life” and praising Adolf Hitler’s policies at a Washington D.C. rally.