"We are ready to do things that are bold," said Turzai, speaking to reporters from the floor of the House, which his party will control for the first time in five years. "We will hit the ground running."
The speaker and majority leader were elected by secret ballot in a closed-door session, so vote totals could not be learned. Smith had one opponent, Rep. Jerry Stern of Blair County. Turzai was unopposed.
Republicans already ruled in the Senate. January will mark the first time in eight years that the GOP will control both chambers of the legislature as well as the governor's office.
The first job will be tackling the 2011-12 state budget, Turzai said.
"We will start from zero with every department," he said. "We will ask everyone to justify their expenditures and conduct a top-to-bottom review of all spending in the state."
When asked what changes could be expected in the way the 203-member House was run, Turzai said the Republican caucus would be more disciplined and more open.
"We are going to do what we say we will do and we will work across the aisle for an agenda that Pennsylvanians say they want," he said.
Smith, 55, is the scion of a northwest Pennsylvania political dynasty of sorts. Elected in 1987, he represents the Punxsutawney area - home to the groundhog Phil - from the same seat his father, Eugene, held for 24 years.
Smith said Tuesday he had no "burning desire" to become speaker when he first came to Harrisburg. He vowed to work with Turzai to create a "balance of authority."
Turzai, 51, a lawyer and former prosecutor from the Pittsburgh area who was first elected in 2001, has been a forceful critic of state spending under Gov. Rendell.
