The six questions we're asking why the House can't elect a speaker and who is ... trends now It's Groundhog Day on Capitol Hill as House Republicans failed - miserably - for a second day on Wednesday trying to elect Rep. Kevin McCarthy as House Speaker in what's proving to be political chaos at the start of the new majority. For a sixth time, mainstream Republicans nominated McCarthy as their speaker as the House plunged deeper into disarray. The House gaveled in at noon, and a McCarthy ally quickly re-nominated him for the job with a rousing speech designed to peel off detractors. 'Sure, it looks messy,' said Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis. But democracy is messy, he said. 'The American people are in charge.' But right now, no one appears to be in charge except for GOP hardliners who keep spiking the California Republican's chances to become the 118th Speaker. DailyMail.com answers five key questions about the race for Speaker - which seems to have no end in sight. WHY DOES THE HOUSE KEEP FAILING TO ELECT A NEW SPEAKER? Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the GOP leader of the House, perhaps in name only, needs 218 votes in the full House. However, a consortium of 19 ultra-conservative Republicans - who call themselves the 'Never Kevin Caucus' - have been warning the California Republican that he did not have the votes. Two days and five speaker ballots later, the House is no closer to a speaker than it was on Tuesday. House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California has lost multiple votes for the House Speaker since Tuesday WHAT DOES THE 'NEVER KEVIN CAUCUS' WANT? Members of the ultra-conservative Freedom Caucus, including Reps. Andy Biggs of Arizona, Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Matt Gaetz of Florida, Chip Roy of Texas and others presented McCarthy with their final offer on Monday, which included demands for high-profile committee assignments and sizable budgets to investigate the Biden administration in exchange for their votes. McCarthy refused to oblige, saying he had gone far enough to appease the lawmakers. Based on the past five votes, the NKs now appear to just want him out - in short, anyone BUT McCarthy. U.S. Rep.-elect Lauren Boebert of Colorado wants former President Donald Trump to withdraw his support for McCarthy. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THE LOWER CHAMBER? Without a speaker, the House, simply put, cannot function. It needs a leader to swear in 75 new members, assign committee chairs, decide on floor proceedings and launch oversight investigations. Everything will be delayed until a speaker is elected and sworn into office. 'The spotlight needs to be put on these 19 — now 20 — that are stopping the business of Congress that we got elected to do,' Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., said. 'It's on them.' Rep.-elect George Santos of New York (right) talks to Rep.-elect Matt Gaetz (R-FL) (L) in the House Chamber during the second day of elections for Speaker of the House at the U.S. Capitol Building on January 04, 2023 in Washington, DC. WHAT ARE MCCARTHY'S OPTIONS? The beleaguered GOP leader is left with two options: keep 'fighting the floor' or step down. McCarthy supporters, who represent the majority of the vote, are vowing to vote for him. Rep.-elect Michael Lawler on New York says he's supporting Kevin McCarthy 'whether it's the first vote, the second vote, the third vote, or the hundredth vote' during an interview on Meet the Press. McCarthy detractors, however, want him to end the battle for control of the House, and in effect, the soul of the GOP and enlisted the former president's help. Rep. Lauren Boebert, a firebrand Colorado conservative, nominated Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., the chosen protest candidate of the day— and called for former President Donald Trump, the conservatives' hero, to tell McCarthy, '`Sir, you do not have the votes and it's time to withdraw.' WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? To date, a solution appears out of reach for all sides, and it's been a century since this last happened. It remains unclear if and when McCarthy passes the threshold to become the next speaker of the House. The current number of Republicans who have pledged support to other candidates is at 20, with some suspecting that list will grow. On Tuesday, Republicans opposing McCarthy nominated a slew of other candidates, including Biggs, Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and even former Rep. Lee Zeldin of New York. And on Wednesday, the first black Republican was nominated for the role, Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida. The candidate to become speaker needs a majority of the votes from House members who are present and voting. Every lawmaker voting 'present' lowers the overall tally needed to reach a majority but that's not a winning solution. Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida was nominated as House Speaker twice on Wednesday as an alternative to McCarthy. HAS THIS HAPPENED BEFORE? The last time the House did not elect a speaker on the first ballot was 1923 when the election stretched for nine ballots. At the time, Republicans had won the majority despite losing a staggering 77 seats, shrinking their margin over Democrats from 171 to just 18. The majority party had named incumbent Rep. Frederick Gillett, R-Mass. but several other candidates, including a Democrat, received votes during the roll call. This resulted in a series of ballots over three days before House Majority Leader Nicholas Longworth, R-Ohio, held an emergency meeting with those opposing. Their concern, similarly, to those issued against McCarthy, was over a series of rules changes that they believed deserved a fair hearing. Longworth obliged and the next day Gillett garnered the 215 votes he needed to remain speaker. Members talk in the House chamber as the House meets for a second day to elect a speaker and convene the 118th Congress in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023. All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility