Speaker McCarthy’s decision against standing for reelection to the speakership opens the way for ambitious Republicans who now have a rare opening to step into the House’s top job — albeit at a perilous moment. Will the House GOP, with its slender majority, stick with Mr. McCarthy’s lieutenants and risk ending up in the same place they are now? Or will it advance a more moderate candidate in the hopes of winning Democratic support?

One potential candidate is the now-former speaker’s top deputy — the House Majority Leader, Congressman Steve Scalise. The eastern Louisiana native has served in House GOP leadership for more than a decade. He became something of a folk hero to Republican elected officials and voters alike when he was seriously wounded in a shooting in 2017 in northern Virginia.

Punchbowl News’ John Bresnahan reported on Tuesday evening that Mr. Scalise was already making calls to his fellow Republicans, asking for their support in the coming speaker election. Mr. Scalise’s time in leadership and his prolific fundraising abilities (he raised the fifth-highest dollar amount in the House during the 2022 cycle) has won him many friends among the rank-and-file. 

A concern for some members may be that Mr. Scalise was recently diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a treatable form of blood cancer that could nonetheless take up some of his personal time as Congress prepares to deal with serious challenges in the coming weeks. 

Next in line for the speakership by dint of seniority is the House Majority Whip, Congressman Tom Emmer. As chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee — the House GOP’s chief fundraising and political apparatus — Mr. Emmer in 2022 helped his party win back the House after he led the effort to pick up nine seats in the 2020 House elections. As head of the NRCC, Mr. Emmer headlined fundraisers for candidates all across the country, giving him close personal access to many of the House’s newer members. 

The Washington Post reported on September 28 that the very hardliners who wanted to remove Mr. McCarthy wanted to replace him with Mr. Emmer, which is surprising given there has been no daylight between the two men since they took, respectively, the No. one and No. three positions in the House. 

While Mr. Emmer said at the time he was not interested in “palace intrigue” or replacing Mr. McCarthy, the whip’s tune may change depending on his ambition or the reception he gets from fellow Republicans in the coming days should he choose to hint at a run. If he chooses not to, Mr. Emmer is likely to move into the Majority Leader position — a promotion nonetheless that still keeps him on track to be speaker one day. 

One of the eight conservatives who voted to oust Mr. McCarthy, Congressman Tim Burchett, told CNN on Tuesday night that the GOP has a “deep bench” and his party will not have trouble choosing a new leader. Mr. Burchett floated the chairwoman of the House Republican conference — the No. four position in the House — Congresswoman Elise Stefanik as a possible speaker. 

He also speculated that the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Congressman Mark Green, would make a fine speaker. Mr. Green, who is a 20-year veteran of the Army and a decorated Green Beret, has been a leader on the investigation into the Biden administration’s handling of the pullout from Afghanistan while also attempting to craft border security legislation. 

One shock move from more moderate House Republicans who hope to isolate the eight House conservatives and other fringe members who tortured Mr. McCarthy during his tenure would be to nominate for speaker the chairman of the House Rules Committee, Congressman Tom Cole. 

Mr. Cole, who has served in the House for more than 20 years, is a beloved figure on both sides of the aisle, famously inviting Democrats and Republicans alike to drink and smoke cigars in the Rules Committee meeting room late into the night. 

A report from the Dispatch on Tuesday quoted Congressman Don Beyer as saying he and some of his fellow Democrats would vote for Mr. Cole should he decide to run with the support of more moderate Republicans who do not want GOP leadership to kowtow to the most conservative members of the party. Mr. Cole would also be the first Native American to serve as speaker.

No matter who the House Republicans choose to nominate as their candidate for speaker, it is unlikely that they will receive much — if any — Democratic support. This likely leads to a lengthy vote series that could take days or even weeks if conservative members of the GOP refuse to consent to anyone from the leadership establishment being elevated to the speakership. 

When the new speaker is finally chosen, he or she will be confronted with serious challenges and a short window of time to tackle them. In one of Mr. McCarthy’s last acts as speaker, he ushered a 45-day government funding bill through the House, giving his GOP colleagues time to pass the remaining appropriations bills they have so far failed to move. 

By November 17, the government will shut down, and every day that the House continues to spend debating about who should be speaker and voting over and over again in the hopes of reaching a consensus candidate is a day they are not working on a budget, which President Biden and a wide bipartisan group in the Senate hopes includes funding for aid to Ukraine.