Paul Ryan announces candidacy for House speaker

Paul Ryan has officially declared his candidacy for speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday evening October 22 in a letter to fellow Republican lawmakers that was released by his office.

"I believe we are ready to move forward as a one, united team. And I am ready and eager to be our speaker," Ryan wrote on Thursday.

He added in the letter, "I know many of you want to show the country how to fix our tax code, how to rebuild our military, how to strengthen the safety net, and how to lift people out of poverty. And we can show the country what a commonsense conservative agenda looks like.''

Republicans are scheduled to nominate a new speaker on Wednesday October 28, with a vote by the full House the following day..