What is Speaker of the United States House of Representatives?
{{Infobox Political post |body = the United States House of Representatives |post = Speaker |insignia = Seal of the Speaker of the US House of Representatives.svg |insigniasize = 100px |insigniacaption = Seal of the Speaker |image = Speaker Mike Johnson Official Portrait.jpg |imagesize = |incumbent = [[Mike Johnson]] |incumbentsince = October 25, 2023 |style = Mister or Madam Speaker<br><small>(Informal and within the House)</small><br>The Honorable<br><small>(Formal)</small> |appointer = Elected by the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]] |termlength = |formation = [[Constitution of the United States|U.S. Constitution]]<br />March 4, 1789 |succession = [[United States presidential line of succession|Second]] |inaugural = [[Frederick Muhlenberg]]<br />April 1, 1789 |website = [http://www.speaker.gov/ Speaker of the House] }} The '''Speaker of the United States House of Representatives''' is the head of the [[United States]] [[United States House of Representatives|House of Representatives]]. The Speaker is elected by the current members of the House. A person with more than half of the votes becomes Speaker. ==Duties== The Speaker has always been a member of the majority party (the party with the most members) but does not have to be an elected member of the House (this has not happened yet). The job of the Speaker is to keep the House in order and to assign committee memberships and chairmanships. It is an important and powerful position in government. ==Background== [[Sam Rayburn]] is the only person to have served as Speaker of the House for more than ten years. [[Theodore M. Pomeroy]] served as Speaker of the House for one day after Speaker [[Schuyler Colfax]] resigned to become [[Vice President of the United States]]; Pomeroy's term as a [[Member of Congress]] ended the next day. [[Sam Rayburn]], [[Henry Clay]], [[Thomas Brackett