John Boehner is the Speaker of the House. He was elected to that post by the Republicans who won a majority of House seats in the 2010 elections. Now that the House has remained in Republican control, most people expect Boehner to retain the speakership. But there’s a special opportunity this time around for something different to happen.
The Democrats have gained about eight seats in the recent elections and now they are only 17 votes short of a majority in the House. If 17 moderate Republicans can be persuaded to vote with the Democrats to elect a moderate Speaker, that would change how Washington works over the next two years.