this is CNN breaking news and welcome to a special edition of the lead and I'm

Jake Tapper my colleague Aaron Bernetta staying with me right now house

members are voting for a speaker for the third time today the ninth time

overall this week Kevin McCarthy appears to be headed to his ignominious

ninth defeat in his attempt to be speaker of this house this historic fight

now surpassing the last time it went to multiple ballots the prolonged 19

23 that which was decided on the ninth ballot this one will not be decided

on the ninth ballot it looks yet for the first time this week there are some

positive signs for the Republican leader amid the continued dysfunction his

allies say one of the anti McCarthy rebel says progress is being made in

negotiations after McCarthy offered more major concessions but allies and

McCarthy they say they're drawing a line in the sand when it comes to whether

or not committee gavils chairmen ships go to the holdouts it's not clear a

deal will even net McCarthy the total of 218 votes he needs to be speaker to

be frank Republicans Andy Biggs and Lauren Bober and Matt Gates and Bob

good they say they are firmly in the never Kevin camp never if just one more

house for public continues to join those four he can only afford to lose four

McCarthy will never wheeled the speakers gavil that is without help from

democrats or changing the rules in some way let's go straight to see an

achieved congressional correspondent Manu Raju whose life was on Capitol Hill

Manu we keep hearing progress is being made progress is being made Kevin

McCarthy is well on his way to breaking records certainly for this and last

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