happening now, breaking news. kevin mccarthy trying to seize the momentum right now in the fight for the speakership. the house is preparing to return to session at 10:00 p.m. eastern tonight, after two very dramatic votes saw the republican leader flip more than a dozen hardliner holdouts coming up just short of a majority. the country marks the second anniversary of the january 6th insur re insur insurrection. president biden honoring the defenders of democracy today, including several police officers brutally attacked while holding off the mob at the capitol. welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the world. i m wolf blitzer. you are in the situation room. announcer: this is cnn breaking news. let s get to the breaking news. the momentum in the speaker s race swinging heavily toward house republican leader kevin mccarthy. our chief congressional correspondent manu raju is joining us live from capitol hill. i understand you are getting new understand.
432 elected congressmen or calling them congressmen-elect. he needs three more to close the deal. republicans are hoping at 10:00 p.m. time when they reconvene, he will have the three. that is a stubborn six that is left over. let s get the details from chad pergram with the very latest. chad? neil, the speakership is a game of inches. today for the first time since tuesday, kevin mccarthy finally showed he was gaining ground towards securing the votes to become speaker. i think you saw we made very good progress. we ll come back tonight and i believe tonight we ll have the votes to finish this once and for all. just remind me of what my father always told me. it s not how you start, it s how you finish. we have to finish for the american public. this is now the fifth longest speaker election in house history. mccarthy lacks the votes, however 15 house republicans who oppose mccarthy are now in his camp. i know you re all wondering what changed the vote. i think i can
plus we will speak with the new secretary of transportation pete buttigieg live in this show in a bit. but, first, breaking tonight, just moments ago it has been more than 100 years since we have seen this moment on capitol hill. more than nine ballots for speaker of the house and just now after a tenth vote has just wrapped up. we still don t have a house speaker. the growing question now is who will blink first? we re in the third day day of the republican battle over this job. former minority leader kevin mccarthy still does not have enough support to get to the magic number and the top spot. about 20 opponents are refusing to buckle so far as negotiations continue behind the scenes vote after vote. senior congressional correspondent chad pergram has the latest tonight live from capitol hill. good evening, chad. bret, kevin mccarthy expected to move the meter today. it never happened, despite concessions. the house is no closer to electing a speaker than when it started
house to capitol hill with the collision of two historic and deeply connected events. the first, the ongoing crisis over the house speakership still unfolding in the house at this moment, which just voted to adjourn until 10:00 pm tonight after 13 votes took pl. and the speaker was still not elected pickett is something that has not happened in american politics in 164 years. since before the civil war. the second event, the anniversary of the january 6 insurrection. the worst attack on the united its capital in centuries. the commemoration today took place at the white house where pres. joe biden awarded the country second highest civilian honor, the presidential citizens will to 14 people who were instrumental in making sure that american democracy survived the coup attempt by the ex-president and his republican allies. it is group that includes first responders, officers, as well as election workers like ruby freeman and shane mossberg we have a chance to speak to two of t
hoping new concessions offered to those 20 plus members voting against him will put him over the top. one aide told fox news mccarthy is now open to allowing just one member to introduce a motion to vacate the speaker s chair. they could get the conversation started on kicking him or anybody out of the seat with one person coming forward. also putting more house freedom caucus members on top committees. and he is promising to hold votes on the caucus s priorities like border legislation and term limits for members. patience among the rank and file is wearing thin with some suggesting that kevin mccarthy should step aside for a different candidate at this point. the leader s supporters are going after all the defectors saying enough is enough. people who are voting against kevin mccarthy in the republican conference are aiding joe biden, aiding hakeem jeffries and chuck schumer. they are the reason we re not doing the business we set out to do. these folks need to get seriou