<P> The House of Representatives elects the Speaker of the House on the first day of every new Congress and in the event of the death , resignation or removal from the Chair of an incumbent Speaker . The Clerk of the House of Representatives requests nominations : there are normally two , one from each major party ( each party having previously met to decide on its nominee ) . The Clerk then calls the roll of the Representatives , each Representative indicating the surname of the candidate the Representative is supporting . Representatives are not restricted to voting for one of the nominated candidates and may vote for any person , even for someone who is not a member of the House at all . They may also abstain by voting `` present '' . </P>
who votes in the speaker of the house
The House of Representatives