Who is Matt Gaetz? Congressman who toppled US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in historic first

In a single-man campaign, Republican Matt Gaetz managed to oust sitting House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Tuesday, in a voting reflective of intra-party conflict unseen in the history of US. The 41-year-old politician did not break a sweat as he headed the anti-McCarthy effort from one of the most powerful positions in the US.

Here's everything you need to know about Matt Gaetz, a backbencher who rose from Florida state politics and became the man who vacated the chair of the House Speaker.

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Matt Gaetz: Beginnings in Florida

Gaetz won the crowded GOP primary in 2010 for the Florida state House, using his resources to his advantage as an attorney.

He joined his father in the state legislature, where he served as a senator from 2006-2016, including his time as chamber president from 2012-2014.

Although he initially intended to run for the state Senate held by his father in 2016, he opted to run in Florida's 1st Congressional District and won.

Gaetz, a loyalist of former US president Donald Trump, has rebuffed traditional conservative stances on issues like marijuana, which he supports removing from the Controlled Substances Act.

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In 2021, reports said that federal investigators were probing a 2018 trip to the Bahamas involving escorts allegedly trafficked for Gaetz, including a 17-year-old girl. However, he denied any wrongdoing and insisted that he had norelations with an underage girl. The Justice Department did not bring any charges against him.

Matt Gaetz vs Kevin McCarthy

Although Gaetz insists that his drive to remove McCarthy wasn't personal, the feud between the two was Congress's worst-kept secret. McCarthy suggested that Gaetz might blame him for the House Ethics Committee inquiry into allegations that Gaetz broke sex-trafficking laws, ABC News reported.

The feud between Gaetz and McCarthy came to the fore this year. Gaetz opposed McCarthy's speakership push, causing McCarthy to undergo 15 rounds of voting before winning.

After it became clear that the Floridan would prompt a motion to vacate, McCarthy repeatedly sniped at Gaetz last month.

"He's blaming me for an ethics complaint against him in the last Congress," McCarthy told CNBC. "I have nothing to do with it," he added.

After the 216-210 vote that ousted McCarthy on Tuesday (Oct 2), Gaetz told reporters, "I think that this represents the ripping off the Band-Aid."

"Kevin McCarthy is a feature of the swamp. He has risen to power by collecting special interest money and redistributing that money in exchange for favours. We are breaking the fever now," he added.

(With inputs from agencies)

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