WASHINGTON — An up-and-coming House committee chairman announced his long-shot candidacy Sunday for speaker of the House, adding a new dose of turmoil for reeling House Republicans.
GOP Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah presented himself as a new face who can unite the House in the wake of Speaker John Boehner’s sudden resignation last month. Boehner’s deputy, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California, remains the favorite, but Chaffetz’s candidacy ensures there will be no coronation.
The House GOP will vote by secret ballot on Thursday, following by a floor vote in the full House later in the month.
“I can bridge that divide between our more centrist members and some of the more far-right-wing members. That’s why I’ve entered this race,” Chaffetz told “Fox News Sunday.”
“The American public wants to see a change. They want a fresh start,” Chaffetz said. “There’s a reason why we see this phenomenon across the country, and you don’t just give an automatic promotion to the existing leadership team. That doesn’t signal change.”
Chaffetz, the 48-year-old chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, has used that post to launch high-profile investigations of the Secret Service, Planned Parenthood and other issues.
His candidacy, which took most lawmakers by surprise when news began to emerge Friday, underscores chaos in the House little more than a week after Boehner, R-Ohio, announced he would resign rather than face a possible floor vote to depose him pushed by hard-line conservatives.
In the days immediately following, McCarthy was viewed as the presumptive favorite to replace the outgoing speaker, who quickly endorsed his No. 2.