The Maryland House of Delegates elected Del. Adrienne Jones as the new House speaker on May 1.

Last month, Gov. Larry Hogan called the special session to elect a successor to the late Michael E. Busch, who passed away on April 7.

Del. Jones was the speaker pro tem and had been Busch’s second-in-command for 16 years.

The special session was delayed for more than two hours as Democrats battled over who should succeed the longtime speaker.

After much debate, Del. Jones won the nomination and was subsequently elected to the position, making her the first female and first African American speaker in state history.