Jim Jordan loses first vote to become House speaker as GOP chaos deepens

Table Of Content

• What happened in the second round of voting?
• Former GOP lawmaker Charlie Dent: I don't see how McCarthy gets enough votes for the speakership
• McHenry lays out next steps in search for House speaker
• As the chaos continues, there is more talk of Speaker McHenry.
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Jordan and McCarthy were seen huddling on the floor Tuesday, and Jordan, after losing a floor vote on the first ballot, decamped to the former speaker’s suite. It’s now been two weeks of high-stakes chaos over the speaker’s gavel following the unprecedented ouster of Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. The House’s slim margin is what led to McCarthy’s removal at the hands of a band of eight GOP rebels – and now a similarly sized group of House Republicans could block Jordan’s ascension, too.

What happened in the second round of voting?

Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan lost his first round of voting for speaker of the House after Republicans could not unify behind their new conference leader. Congress must pass the legislation to keep the government open in November. The handful of conservatives had voted to depose Mr McCarthy because had passed a “clean” continuing resolution to keep the government open without any conservative riders in September. Many Republicans cast their votes for Mr McCarthy and Mr Scalise in protest of how they were treated.

Former GOP lawmaker Charlie Dent: I don't see how McCarthy gets enough votes for the speakership

"We are at a time of great crisis across America, a time of historic challenges in this very chamber and a time when heinous acts of terror and evil have been committed against our great ally, Israel," the New York Republican said. Rep. Elise Stefanik, the Republican conference chair, delivered the nominating speech for Jordan, characterizing the Ohio Republican as the candidate who is best suited to respond to the current moment. "We need to choose the right speaker," Gimenez said, adding that the process "doesn't need to be done quickly," as long as McHenry's power could be expanded for now. A spokesperson for Scalise told Fox News Digital that the report was "not accurate." Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, vouches for Rep. Jim Jordan to be the next speaker of the House ahead of the vote.

House speakership up in air as resistance to Jim Jordan hardens - BBC.com

House speakership up in air as resistance to Jim Jordan hardens.

Posted: Wed, 18 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

McHenry lays out next steps in search for House speaker

"I thought it was important that we all know, get an answer to the question if they wanted me to continue in that role," he said. "So we put the question to them, they made a different decision. I told the conference that I appreciated getting to work with everyone, talk with everyone." The motion-to-vacate rules of the House of Representatives haven't changed since Rep. Mike Johnson became speaker, meaning he's still at risk of having one member trigger a vote to oust him. "As I said when this process began, whoever the Speaker is, I will seek to work with them in good faith on behalf of the American people," he said in a statement.

As the chaos continues, there is more talk of Speaker McHenry.

Kevin McCarthy — who was ousted as House speaker earlier this month — has been counseling Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan on strategy for his own speakership bid, according to multiple sources familiar with the situation. A GOP source said that some members only committed to backing Jordan for speaker on the first ballot so opposition to the Ohio Republican could grow in future votes. Jordan’s allies were hoping that Scalise supporters would help whip fellow Scalise allies who voted against Jordan. But Scalise’s allies feel like they did far more to rally around Jordan than Jordan did when Scalise initially won the nomination last week. The vote, in which Jordan failed to secure a majority of the full House, was a disappointment for Jordan’s allies who had expressed hopes that the number of holdouts would be in the single digits.

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He later added that if elected speaker, he would "tirelessly work to defend and expand our majority and help every Republican member back at home." "Too much is at stake to hand control of the House over to radical liberal Democrats, which is why we must elect a conservative as the next speaker," she said in a statement. "Throughout my time in Congress, I have always been a team player and supported our Republican nominees out of conference."

Rep. Jim Jordan lost 20 Republican votes Tuesday in his first round of balloting for House speaker, creating an uphill climb to win the gavel. Rep. John Rutherford (R-Fla.), who also twice voted for Scalise, told reporters he had received similar treatment. After voting against Jordan, Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) told reporters that he did not “see the outcome changing" and that he would back giving McHenry more power as acting speaker. With 25 Republicans declining to offer their support, Jordan lost the support of three additional Republicans, marking his greatest defeat to date. Tuesday saw Jordan lose the speakership by 22 votes, and on Monday, he missed out on the gavel by 20 votes.

Jordan holdouts demand immediate second vote

The new speaker will take over as Congress faces numerous crises both domestically and abroad. Funding for federal agencies extends only through Nov. 17, and lawmakers will have to act to avert a government shutdown. The White House has also indicated it will ask Congress to approve additional aid for Ukraine in its war against Russia, and President Biden said he will push lawmakers for assistance for Israel in the ongoing war with the Gaza-based Hamas militant group. Several Republicans who opposed Jordan's bid for speaker announced Monday that they had switched their positions after discussions with the Ohio Republican.

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The feeling in McCarthy’s camp is that this fight with the Freedom Caucus — which forced him to drop out of speaker’s race in 2015 before it went to a vote — has been a long time coming, and now it’s time for everyone to put their cards on the table. Charile Dent, a former Republican congressman, said that he doesn't see a clear path for Rep. Kevin McCarthy to win the House speakership as he appears to suffer a defeat on the first speaker ballot. Members can vote for anyone, and they can protest by skipping the vote or voting “present.” If enough people skip the vote or vote “present,” the number of votes required for a majority can drop below 218.

But House rules require that the speaker receive a majority of the votes cast, something neither Mr. Jeffries nor Mr. Jordan got in the first round of voting, because 20 Republicans voted for other candidates. At the Urbana Brewing Company on Tuesday, patrons gave Mr. Jordan passing marks. Eric Forson, 50, said that when he wrote to his elected representatives during the 2013 government shutdown, Mr. Jordan was the only one who responded. Representative Victoria Spartz of Indiana told reporters she had been moved by the nominating speech by Representative Tom Cole of Oklahoma, which cast Mr. Jordan as a fiscal hawk ready to right the country’s finances. Representative Jim Jordan, the hard-line conservative Republican from Ohio, lost support on Wednesday on his second try to become speaker, falling short again of the majority he needed to be elected.

Two Republicans — Reps. Doug LaMalfa of Richvale and Victoria Spartz of Indiana— switched their votes to Jordan. Florida's Rep. Gus Bilirakis, who was absent for Tuesday's vote, voted for Jordan on Wednesday. The congresswoman announced earlier this year that she would not run for reelection in 2024.

The other seven Republicans who voted to remove McCarthy were Andy Biggs of Arizona, Ken Buck of Colorado, Tim Burchett of Tennessee, Eli Crane of Arizona, Bob Good of Virginia, Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Matt Rosendale of Montana. "The eight of us have said that we are willing to accept censure, sanction, suspension, removal from the Republican Conference. We of course will remain Republicans," Gaetz said. "But if what these holdouts need is a pound of our flesh, we're willing to give it to them in order to see them elect Jim Jordan for speaker."

As Rep. Jim Jordan meets with a number of allies in hopes of swaying key holdouts to his speakership bid, GOP sources say his opposition could grow if the votes continue over multiple rounds of ballots. Jordan’s supporters are confident that the public floor vote will force the remaining holdouts to flip their way. Kevin McCarthy narrowly won the speakership in January on the 15th round of balloting, after five excruciating days. Arriving to the vote Tuesday, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told reporters that he believes Jordan can clinch the gavel on the first ballot. If McCarthy does not secure enough votes the first ballot, lawmakers will continue voting until someone wins the majority. They can take successive votes, but the House does not kick off the new Congress until a speaker is elected.