List of speakers of the United States House of Representatives
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
The speaker of the United States House of Representatives 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 the body's presiding officer, the de facto leader of the body's majority party, and the institution's administrative head.[1] Speakers also perform various administrative and procedural functions, all in addition to representing their own congressional district. 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. Neither does the speaker regularly participate in floor debates. Additionally, the speaker is second in the presidential line of succession, after the vice president and ahead of the president pro tempore of the Senate.[2]
The House elects a new speaker by roll call vote when it first convenes after a general election for its two-year term, or when a speaker dies, resigns or is removed from the position intra-term. A majority of votes cast (as opposed to a majority of the full membership of the House) is necessary to elect a speaker.[1] If no candidate receives a majority vote, then the roll call is repeated until a speaker is elected.[3] The Constitution does not require the speaker to be an incumbent member of the House, although every speaker thus far has been.[4]
The current speaker of the House, Democrat Nancy Pelosi of California, was elected to a fourth (second consecutive) term in office on January 3, 2021, the first day of the 117th Congress. She is the only woman to have served as speaker. Altogether, 54 individuals, from 23 of the 50 states, have served as speaker of the House. The number from each state are:
- Eight: Massachusetts;
- Four: Kentucky and Virginia;
- Three: Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Texas;
- Two: Maine, New Jersey, New York, and South Carolina;
- One: Alabama, California, Connecticut, Iowa, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Washington, and Wisconsin.
One speaker, James K. Polk, subsequently served as President of the United States, the only one to serve in both offices, and two speakers, Schuyler Colfax and John Nance Garner, later became Vice president. The longest serving speaker was Sam Rayburn – 17 years, 53 days. Elected 10 times, he led the House three times: from September 1940 to January 1947; January 1949 to January 1953; and January 1955 to November 1961. Tip O'Neill had the longest uninterrupted tenure as speaker – 9 years, 350 days. Elected five times, he led the House from January 1977 to January 1987. Theodore M. Pomeroy had the shortest tenure; elected speaker on March 3, 1869, he served one day.
Contents
List of speakers
The House has elected a speaker 126 times since 1789:[3] at the start of each of the 117 congresses, plus on 10 occasions when a vacancy arose during a Congress via death or resignation. Of the 54 people who have served as speaker of the House over the past 235 years, 32 served multiple terms, and seven of them served nonconsecutive terms: Frederick Muhlenberg, Henry Clay, John W. Taylor, Thomas Brackett Reed, Joseph W. Martin Jr., Sam Rayburn, and Nancy Pelosi. Altogether, there have been 63 occasions on which a new speaker took office. Every speaker of the House has been a member of a political party or faction; the number affiliated with each is:
- Democratic – 22;[lower-alpha 1] Republican – 16; Democratic-Republican – 6;[lower-alpha 2] Jacksonian – 3;[lower-alpha 1] Whig – 3; Federalist – 2; Pro-Administration – 2;[lower-alpha 3] Adams Republican – 1;[lower-alpha 2] American – 1; Anti-Administration – 1.[lower-alpha 3]
As of October 2024, there are four living former speakers of the House: Newt Gingrich, Dennis Hastert, John Boehner, and Paul Ryan. Nancy Pelosi was also among this group, prior to reassuming the office in January 2019.
Congress | Term | Portrait | Name | Party | District[lower-alpha 4] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st | April 1, 1789 – March 4, 1791 |
Frederick Muhlenberg | Pro-Administration | Pennsylvania at-large | ||
2nd | October 24, 1791 – March 4, 1793 |
Jonathan Trumbull Jr. | Pro-Administration | Connecticut at-large | ||
3rd | December 2, 1793[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1795 |
Frederick Muhlenberg | Anti-Administration | Pennsylvania at-large | ||
4th | December 7, 1795 – March 4, 1797 |
Jonathan Dayton | Federalist | New Jersey at-large | ||
May 15, 1797 – March 4, 1799 |
||||||
6th | December 2, 1799[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1801 |
150px | Theodore Sedgwick | Federalist | Massachusetts 1 | |
7th | December 7, 1801 – March 4, 1803 |
Nathaniel Macon | Democratic- Republican |
North Carolina 5 | ||
8th | October 17, 1803 – March 4, 1805 |
North Carolina 6 | ||||
9th | December 2, 1805[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1807 |
|||||
10th | October 26, 1807 – March 4, 1809 |
Joseph Bradley Varnum | Democratic- Republican |
Massachusetts 4 | ||
11th | May 22, 1809[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1811 |
|||||
12th | November 4, 1811 – March 4, 1813 |
Henry Clay | Democratic- Republican |
Kentucky 5 | ||
13th | May 24, 1813 – January 19, 1814[lower-alpha 6] |
Kentucky 2 | ||||
13th[lower-alpha 7] | January 19, 1814 – March 4, 1815 |
Langdon Cheves | Democratic- Republican |
South Carolina 1 | ||
14th | December 4, 1815 – March 4, 1817 |
Henry Clay | Democratic- Republican |
Kentucky 2 | ||
15th | December 1, 1817 – March 4, 1819 |
|||||
16th | December 6, 1819 – October 28, 1820[lower-alpha 6] |
|||||
16th[lower-alpha 7] | November 15, 1820[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1821 |
John W. Taylor | Democratic- Republican |
New York 11 | ||
17th | December 4, 1821[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1823 |
Philip P. Barbour | Democratic- Republican |
Virginia 11 | ||
18th | December 1, 1823 – March 6, 1825[lower-alpha 6] |
Henry Clay | Democratic- Republican |
Kentucky 3 | ||
19th | December 5, 1825[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1827 |
John W. Taylor | Adams Republican | New York 17 | ||
20th | December 3, 1827 – March 4, 1829 |
150px | Andrew Stevenson | Jacksonian | Virginia 9 | |
21st | December 7, 1829 – March 4, 1831 |
|||||
22nd | December 5, 1831 – March 4, 1833 |
|||||
23rd | December 2, 1833 – June 2, 1834[lower-alpha 6] |
Virginia 11 | ||||
23rd[lower-alpha 7] | June 2, 1834[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1835 |
John Bell | Jacksonian | Tennessee 7 | ||
24th | December 7, 1835 – March 4, 1837 |
James K. Polk | Jacksonian | Tennessee 9 | ||
25th | September 4, 1837 – March 4, 1839 |
Democratic | ||||
26th | December 16, 1839[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1841 |
Robert M. T. Hunter | Whig | Virginia 9 | ||
27th | May 31, 1841 – March 4, 1843 |
John White | Whig | Kentucky 9 | ||
28th | December 4, 1843 – March 4, 1845 |
John Winston Jones | Democratic | Virginia 6 | ||
29th | December 1, 1845 – March 4, 1847 |
John Wesley Davis | Democratic | Indiana 6 | ||
30th | December 6, 1847[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1849 |
Robert Charles Winthrop | Whig | Massachusetts 1 | ||
31st | December 22, 1849[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1851 |
Howell Cobb | Democratic | Georgia 6 | ||
32nd | December 1, 1851 – March 4, 1853 |
Linn Boyd | Democratic | Kentucky 1 | ||
33rd | December 5, 1853 – March 4, 1855 |
|||||
34th | February 2, 1856[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1857 |
150px | Nathaniel P. Banks | American | Massachusetts 7 | |
35th | December 7, 1857 – March 4, 1859 |
James Lawrence Orr | Democratic | South Carolina 5 | ||
36th | February 1, 1860[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1861 |
150px | William Pennington | Republican | New Jersey 5 | |
37th | July 4, 1861 – March 4, 1863 |
150px | Galusha A. Grow | Republican | Pennsylvania 14 | |
38th | December 7, 1863 – March 4, 1865 |
150px | Schuyler Colfax | Republican | Indiana 9 | |
39th | December 4, 1865 – March 4, 1867 |
|||||
40th | March 4, 1867 – March 3, 1869[lower-alpha 6] |
|||||
40th[lower-alpha 7] | March 3–4, 1869 | Theodore M. Pomeroy | Republican | New York 24 | ||
41st | March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1871 |
James G. Blaine | Republican | Maine 3 | ||
42nd | March 4, 1871 – March 4, 1873 |
|||||
43rd | March 4, 1873 – March 4, 1875 |
|||||
44th | December 6, 1875 – August 19, 1876[lower-alpha 8] |
Michael C. Kerr | Democratic | Indiana 3 | ||
44th[lower-alpha 7] | December 4, 1876 – March 4, 1877 |
Samuel J. Randall | Democratic | Pennsylvania 3 | ||
45th | October 15, 1877 – March 4, 1879 |
|||||
46th | March 18, 1879 – March 4, 1881 |
|||||
47th | December 5, 1881 – March 4, 1883 |
J. Warren Keifer | Republican | Ohio 8 | ||
48th | December 3, 1883 – March 4, 1885 |
John G. Carlisle | Democratic | Kentucky 6 | ||
49th | December 7, 1885 – March 4, 1887 |
|||||
50th | December 5, 1887 – March 4, 1889 |
|||||
51st | December 2, 1889 – March 4, 1891 |
Thomas Brackett Reed | Republican | Maine 1 | ||
52nd | December 8, 1891 – March 4, 1893 |
Charles Frederick Crisp | Democratic | Georgia 3 | ||
53rd | August 7, 1893 – March 4, 1895 |
|||||
54th | December 2, 1895 – March 4, 1897 |
Thomas Brackett Reed | Republican | Maine 1 | ||
55th | March 15, 1897 – March 4, 1899 |
|||||
56th | December 4, 1899 – March 4, 1901 |
David B. Henderson | Republican | Iowa 3 | ||
57th | December 2, 1901 – March 4, 1903 |
|||||
58th | November 9, 1903 – March 4, 1905 |
Joseph Gurney Cannon | Republican | Illinois 18 | ||
59th | December 4, 1905 – March 4, 1907 |
|||||
60th | December 2, 1907 – March 4, 1909 |
|||||
61st | March 15, 1909 – March 4, 1911 |
|||||
62nd | April 4, 1911 – March 4, 1913 |
Champ Clark | Democratic | Missouri 9 | ||
63rd | April 7, 1913 – March 4, 1915 |
|||||
64th | December 6, 1915 – March 4, 1917 |
|||||
65th | April 2, 1917 – March 4, 1919 |
|||||
66th | May 19, 1919 – March 4, 1921 |
150px | Frederick H. Gillett | Republican | Massachusetts 2 | |
67th | April 11, 1921 – March 4, 1923 |
|||||
68th | December 5, 1923[lower-alpha 5] – March 4, 1925 |
|||||
69th | December 7, 1925 – March 4, 1927 |
Nicholas Longworth | Republican | Ohio 1 | ||
70th | December 5, 1927 – March 4, 1929 |
|||||
71st | April 15, 1929 – March 4, 1931 |
|||||
72nd | December 7, 1931 – March 4, 1933 |
John Nance Garner | Democratic | Texas 15 | ||
73rd | March 9, 1933 – August 19, 1934[lower-alpha 8] |
Henry Thomas Rainey | Democratic | Illinois 20 | ||
74th | January 3, 1935 – June 4, 1936[lower-alpha 8] |
Jo Byrns | Democratic | Tennessee 5 | ||
74th[lower-alpha 7] | June 4, 1936 – January 3, 1937 |
William B. Bankhead | Democratic | Alabama 7 | ||
75th | January 5, 1937 – January 3, 1939 |
|||||
76th | January 3, 1939 – September 15, 1940[lower-alpha 8] |
|||||
76th[lower-alpha 7] | September 16, 1940 – January 3, 1941 |
Sam Rayburn | Democratic | Texas 4 | ||
77th | January 3, 1941 – January 3, 1943 |
|||||
78th | January 6, 1943 – January 3, 1945 |
|||||
79th | January 3, 1945 – January 3, 1947 |
|||||
80th | January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1949 |
Joseph W. Martin Jr. | Republican | Massachusetts 14 | ||
81st | January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1951 |
Sam Rayburn | Democratic | Texas 4 | ||
82nd | January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1953 |
|||||
83rd | January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1955 |
Joseph W. Martin Jr. | Republican | Massachusetts 14 | ||
84th | January 3, 1955 – January 3, 1957 |
Sam Rayburn | Democratic | Texas 4 | ||
85th | January 3, 1957 – January 3, 1959 |
|||||
86th | January 7, 1959 – January 3, 1961 |
|||||
87th | January 3, 1961 – November 16, 1961[lower-alpha 8] |
|||||
87th[lower-alpha 7] | January 10, 1962 – January 3, 1963 |
John W. McCormack | Democratic | Massachusetts 12 | ||
88th | January 9, 1963 – January 3, 1965 |
Massachusetts 9 | ||||
89th | January 4, 1965 – January 3, 1967 |
|||||
90th | January 10, 1967 – January 3, 1969 |
|||||
91st | January 3, 1969 – January 3, 1971 |
|||||
92nd | January 21, 1971 – January 3, 1973 |
Carl Albert | Democratic | Oklahoma 3 | ||
93rd | January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1975 |
|||||
94th | January 14, 1975 – January 3, 1977 |
|||||
95th | January 4, 1977 – January 3, 1979 |
Tip O'Neill | Democratic | Massachusetts 8 | ||
96th | January 15, 1979 – January 3, 1981 |
|||||
97th | January 5, 1981 – January 3, 1983 |
|||||
98th | January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1985 |
|||||
99th | January 3, 1985 – January 3, 1987 |
|||||
100th | January 6, 1987 – January 3, 1989 |
Jim Wright | Democratic | Texas 12 | ||
101st | January 3, 1989 – June 6, 1989[lower-alpha 6] |
|||||
101st[lower-alpha 7] | June 6, 1989 – January 3, 1991 |
Tom Foley | Democratic | Washington 5 | ||
102nd | January 3, 1991 – January 3, 1993 |
|||||
103rd | January 5, 1993 – January 3, 1995 |
|||||
104th | January 4, 1995 – January 3, 1997 |
150px | Newt Gingrich | Republican | Georgia 6 | |
105th | January 7, 1997 – January 3, 1999[lower-alpha 6] |
|||||
106th | January 6, 1999 – January 3, 2001 |
Dennis Hastert | Republican | Illinois 14 | ||
107th | January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2003 |
|||||
108th | January 7, 2003 – January 3, 2005 |
|||||
109th | January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2007 |
|||||
110th | January 4, 2007 – January 3, 2009 |
150px | Nancy Pelosi | Democratic | California 8 | |
111th | January 6, 2009 – January 3, 2011 |
|||||
112th | January 5, 2011 – January 3, 2013 |
Official 2019 portrait of John Boehner, former Speaker of the House from 2011-2015 | John Boehner | Republican | Ohio 8 | |
113th | January 3, 2013 – January 3, 2015 |
|||||
114th | January 6, 2015 – October 29, 2015[lower-alpha 6] |
|||||
114th[lower-alpha 7] | October 29, 2015 – January 3, 2017 |
150px | Paul Ryan | Republican | Wisconsin 1 | |
115th | January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2019 |
|||||
116th | January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2021 |
150px | Nancy Pelosi | Democratic | California 12 | |
117th | January 3, 2021 – present |
|||||
References:[5][6] |
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 During James K. Polk's tenure as speaker the Jacksonian bloc amalgamated into the modern Democratic Party.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 John Taylor served as speaker twice in the 1820s; initially he was as a member of the Democratic–Republican Party, and later, when the party began to fracture, he sided with its pro–Adams faction.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Frederick Muhlenberg served as speaker twice in the 1790s, before political factions coalesced into formal parties; initially he identified with the pro–administration faction, but later he aligned himself with the anti–administration faction.
- ↑ The district listed is the district the speaker represented at the time they were in office, which may be different in different Congresses due to redistricting.
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 Multi-ballot election.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 Resigned from office and from Congress.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 7.9 Intra-term special election.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Died in office.
Timeline
Template:Timeline US Speaker Horizontal
Speakers by time in office
The length of time given below is based on the difference between dates; if counted by number of calendar days all the figures would be one greater. Also, as many speakers were elected multiple times, and to terms that were, in several instances, not consecutive, the length of time given for each speaker measures their cumulative length of incumbency as speaker. Further, time after adjournment of one Congress but before the convening of the next Congress is not counted. For example, Nathaniel Macon was speaker in both the 8th and 9th Congresses, but the eight-month gap between the two Congresses is not counted toward his service. The exact dates of service for each individual speaker is shown in the Term of service column of the above table.
Rank | Name | Time in office | TE | Year(s) in which elected |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Sam Rayburn | 17 years, 53 days | 10 | 1940; 1941; 1943; 1945; 1949; 1951; 1955; 1957; 1959; 1961 |
2 | Henry Clay | 10 years, 196 days | 6 | 1811; 1813; 1815; 1817; 1819; 1823 |
3 | Tip O'Neill | 9 years, 350 days | 5 | 1977; 1979; 1981; 1983; 1985 |
4 | John W. McCormack | 8 years, 344 days | 5 | 1962; 1963; 1965; 1967; 1969 |
5 | Dennis Hastert | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 4 | 1999; 2001; 2003; 2005 |
6 | Nancy Pelosi | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 4 | 2007; 2009; 2019; 2021 |
7 | Champ Clark | 6 years, 357 days | 4 | 1911; 1913; 1915; 1917 |
8 | Carl Albert | 5 years, 337 days | 3 | 1971; 1973; 1975 |
9 | Joseph Gurney Cannon | 5 years, 285 days | 4 | 1903; 1905; 1907; 1909 |
10 | Tom Foley | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 3 | 1989; 1991; 1993 |
11 | James G. Blaine | 5 years, 93 days | 3 | 1869; 1871; 1873 |
12 | Frederick H. Gillett | 4 years, 341 days | 3 | 1919; 1921; 1923 |
13 | John Boehner | 4 years, 297 days | 3 | 2011; 2013; 2015 |
14 | Schuyler Colfax | 4 years, 176 days | 3 | 1863; 1865; 1867 |
15 | Thomas Brackett Reed | 4 years, 172 days | 3 | 1889; 1895; 1897 |
16 | Nicholas Longworth | 4 years, 133 days | 3 | 1925; 1927; 1929 |
17 | William B. Bankhead | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 3 | 1936; 1937; 1939 |
18 | Andrew Stevenson | 4 years, 83 days | 4 | 1827; 1829; 1831; 1833 |
19 | Joseph W. Martin Jr. | 4 years | 2 | 1947; 1953 |
20 | Newt Gingrich | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 2 | 1995; 1997 |
21 | Nathaniel Macon | 3 years, 317 days | 3 | 1801; 1803; 1805 |
22 | John G. Carlisle | 3 years, 267 days | 3 | 1883; 1885; 1887 |
23 | Samuel J. Randall | 3 years, 215 days | 3 | 1876; 1877; 1879 |
24 | Paul Ryan | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 2 | 2015; 2017 |
25 | Frederick Muhlenberg | 3 years, 64 days | 2 | 1789; 1793 |
26 | Joseph Bradley Varnum | 3 years, 49 days | 2 | 1807; 1809 |
27 | Jonathan Dayton | 3 years, 14 days | 2 | 1795; 1797 |
28 | Charles Frederick Crisp | 2 years, 295 days | 2 | 1891; 1893 |
29 | James K. Polk | 2 years, 268 days | 2 | 1835; 1837 |
30 (tie) |
Linn Boyd | 2 years, 182 days | 2 | 1851; 1853 |
David B. Henderson | 2 years, 182 days | 2 | 1899; 1901 | |
32 | Jim Wright | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 2 | 1987; 1989 |
33 | John White | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1841 |
34 | Galusha A. Grow | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1861 |
35 | John W. Taylor | 1 year, 198 days | 2 | 1820; 1825 |
36 | Henry Thomas Rainey | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1933 |
37 | Joseph W. Byrns Sr. | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1935 |
38 | Jonathan Trumbull Jr. | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1791 |
39 | John Wesley Davis | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1845 |
40 | Theodore Sedgwick | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1799 |
41 (tie) |
Philip P. Barbour | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1821 |
John Winston Jones | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1843 | |
43 | J. Warren Keifer | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1881 |
44 | Robert Charles Winthrop | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1847 |
45 (tie) |
James Lawrence Orr | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1857 |
John Nance Garner | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1931 | |
47 | Robert M. T. Hunter | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1839 |
48 | Howell Cobb | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1849 |
49 | Langdon Cheves | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1814 |
50 | William Pennington | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1860 |
51 | Nathaniel P. Banks | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1856 |
52 | John Bell | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1834 |
53 | Michael C. Kerr | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1875 |
54 | Theodore M. Pomeroy | Script error: The function "age_generic" does not exist. | 1 | 1869 |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
No "agency=name" parameter provided.
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Further reading
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- House Document 108–204 – The Cannon Centenary Conference: The Changing Nature of the Speakership