McCarthy's ousting marked the first in the House's 234-year history and was a result of an attempt by a handful of right-wing Republican hardliners with support of the Democrats.
The ousted speaker sparked fury among conservatives after he passed a bipartisan stopgap funding measure over the weekend that was backed by the White House to avert a government shutdown.
Florida conservative Matt Gaetz, who forced the removal vote, gambled that he could oust McCarthy with just a few Republicans.
Republicans were warned by leadership about plunging the party "into chaos," while Gaetz repeatedly complained about McCarthy failing to honor agreements made with the far right.
U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz walks from the U.S. Capitol after his motion to vacate the chair of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Oct. 3, 2023.
"Chaos is Speaker McCarthy," Gaetz said.
"Chaos is somebody who we cannot trust with their word," he added.
Conservative Tennessee congressman Tim Burchett said he hates "losing Kevin as a friend."
"I worry about our country, in all sincerity," he added.
Democrats also had no love for the former speaker. They pointed to McCarthy's decision to renege on a deal with President Joe Biden focused on spending limits that were hammered out earlier this year in high stakes talks over the federal budget.
The pro-business New Democrat Coalition, a large group of Democratic lawmakers, described McCarthy as "simply not trustworthy."
Pramila Jayapal, a leading leftist and chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said Republicans must "wallow in their pigsty of incompetence" than rescue McCarthy.
The writing was on the wall for the former speaker after Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called for his removal.
Democrats joined the 11 rebel Republicans to reject a preliminary motion which would have prevented the final ouster vote from taking place.
A motion to vacate the chair of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the end to his continued leadership as Republican Speaker of the House is passed as shown in this frame grab taken from a live C-SPAN television broadcast shot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Oct. 3, 2023.
With McCarthy out, the House rules provide for a temporary speaker to put the House into recess until a permanent replacement is elected.
Republicans will gather to put up a candidate for a vote to be the new speaker.
Despite being ousted, McCarthy can still return to his post should he be nominated.
It took 15 rounds of balloting for the Californian to win the gavel in January, but the fight demonstrated that he has the support of most of the party.
McCarthy could try to persuade the rank-and-file to rally behind him once more.
Alternatively, he may bow out. This would set up a showdown among his lieutenants — most likely House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and House Majority Whip Tom Emmer.
But Republican hopefuls may shy from taking on what looks like a poisoned chalice in which the hard-right faction will continue to exercise control from the sidelines.
Former President Donald Trump berated Republicans on his social media platform for "always fighting among themselves," offering no support for McCarthy.