WASHINGTON – Republican John Boehner narrowly won re-election Thursday as the speaker of the House of Representatives as the 113th Congress convened in an atmosphere of unusual uncertainty and turmoil.

Outwardly, the day had a festive air as children were allowed to sit in House members’ seats and the usually somber halls of the Capitol complex teemed with revelers. Thursday also had an uplifting note, as Sen. Mark Kirk, who suffered a major stroke last year, climbed the 45 outdoor steps into the Senate chamber with the help of Vice President Joe Biden and two Senate colleagues.

There were celebrations of the diversity of the new Congress. The Senate welcomed its first openly gay member. Senate Republicans welcomed the first African-American Republican in three decades. The House Democratic caucus for the first time had a majority of members who weren’t white men.