House Majority Leader Nicholas Mattiello, D-Cranston, was elected Tuesday afternoon to serve as speaker of the House, replacing Rep. Gordon Fox, D-Providence, who resigned the position Saturday amid brewing scandal. Federal and state officials raided Fox’s statehouse office and personal home Friday, though no information has been released regarding the investigation.

Mattiello was elected with 61 votes, exceeding the required 38 votes — a simple majority in the 75-member House — by 23 votes, the Providence Journal reported. The speakership is highly coveted in Rhode Island politics, and Fox’s departure “triggered a fierce scrum for the job commonly referred to as the most powerful in state politics,” the Boston Globe reported Tuesday.

Mattiello’s primary challenger was Rep. Michael Marcello, D-Scituate, who received just six votes. Marcello acknowledged Tuesday before the 4 p.m. House vote, “I do not have the votes to be the next speaker of the Rhode Island House,” the Journal reported. Two voting house members were absent, and six abstained from the vote.

As speaker of the House, Mattiello said, he is “going to take a comprehensive look at taxes, the state budget, spending (and) … business regulation,” adding, “We all have our personal opinions and beliefs, but I am going to have an evidence-based approach,” the Journal reported.

Many state residents have been disheartened by Fox’s sudden fall, citing hopes that Rhode Island had outgrown its days of political scandal and corruption, the Globe reported.

As of Tuesday afternoon, details about potential allegations against Fox were scarce, with search warrants and affidavits having been “sealed by a court,” the Globe reported.