Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the House Republican Conference's nominee to be the next speaker of the House of Representatives, has once again failed to win the speakership after failing to get enough votes on the second ballot.
Jordan, a close ally of former President Donald Trump and one of the leaders of the conservative wing of the Republican Party, had scheduled a second vote for the speakership for Wednesday, Oct. 18, just one day after failing to obtain the 217 votes necessary to win the speakership a day before, after 20 GOP representatives held out their votes. (Related: Rep. Jim Jordan fails to win speakership in first round of voting after 20 Republicans refused to vote for him.)
In the approximately 24-hour gap between the first and second ballots, Jordan was able to secure the votes of two holdouts – Rep. Doug LaMalfa of California, an ally of former speaker Kevin McCarthy and Rep. Victoria Spartz of Indiana. He also received the support of Rep. Gus Bilirakis of Florida, who was absent for the first vote.
However, at the same time, he lost the support of four other representatives – Reps. Vern Buchanan of Florida, Drew Ferguson of Georgia, Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa and Pete Stauber of Minnesota.
The other 18 representatives who did not vote for Jordan include Republican moderates, staunch allies of McCarthy and a bloc of members who serve on the House Appropriations Committee.
Jordan not conceding, to push ahead with third vote for the House gavel
In a brief statement to the press on Thursday, Oct. 19, after delaying the third vote by a day, Jordan told reporters that he will press ahead with his bid for the speakership.
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"I'm still running for speaker and I plan to go to the floor and get the votes and win this race," he said.
Jordan and his backers in the conservative wing of the party reportedly spent most of Thursday meeting with some of the 22 fellow Republicans who voted against him, but sources privy to the meetings and GOP representatives who spoke with the press noted that these meetings did not appear to change any minds.
"We all told him that we're solid no's. That was the discussion," said Buchanan, who voted for Jordan in the first round before switching and voting for Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida in the second. "Now he's got a decision to make," she added, implying that Jordan should concede the race.
Without a permanent speaker, Rep. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina is currently serving as speaker pro tempore with a very limited mandate. A bipartisan group of representatives has suggested temporarily expanding McHenry's powers to allow the House to conduct some official business, but this was turned down by Jordan's allies who are loathe to partner with the Democrats.
"It's a bad precedent and I don't support it," said Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania.
"Asinine," said Rep. Chip Roy of Texas.
McHenry himself said he rejected the idea of taking the job permanently after he was appointed to the role over two weeks ago, stating: "I did not ask for additional powers. My duty is to get the next speaker elected. That's my focus."
Watch this clip from Newsmax discussing the ongoing Republican infighting over the House Speaker position.
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