U.S. House elects new speaker after historic deadlock

WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. House of Representatives elected Congressman Kevin McCarthy as speaker early Saturday morning after a historic deadlock that kept the lower chamber from being fully functional days after the new Congress convened.

McCarthy, a California Republican, clinched enough votes to become House speaker in the 15th round of voting -- the longest contest in 164 years -- after a bitter fight with a group of hardline conservatives and 14 failed ballots.

It was the first time a House speaker -- who maintains order, manages its proceedings, and governs the administration of its business on the lower chamber's floor -- had not been elected on the first ballot in 100 years.

All House Democrats voted for Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, making him the minority leader and the first African American lawmaker to run a party in either chamber of the U.S. Congress.