Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., talks to reporters as he leaves the House floor after the House voted to adjourn for the evening as the House met for a third day to try and elect a speaker and convene the 118th Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
WASHINGTON (AP) — For a long and frustrating third day, divided Republicans kept the speaker’s chair of the U.S. House empty Thursday, as party leader Kevin McCarthy failed again and again in an excruciating string of ballots to win enough GOP votes to seize the chamber’s gavel.