One day after winning the GOP nomination for speaker, Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana announced Republicans in a closed-door conference Thursday night that he was abandoning his campaign.
The revelation was eventually confirmed to reporters outside the meeting by Scalise, the second-ranking Republican in the leadership.
“I just shared with my colleagues that I’m withdrawing my name as candidate for the speaker designee,” he said.
“Our conference still has to come together and is not there. There are still some people that have their own agendas,” he said. “This House of Representatives needs a speaker, and we need to open up the House again. But clearly, not everybody is there. And there’re still schisms that have to get resolved.”
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, was defeated by Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Texas, in a secret ballot vote on Wednesday to become the majority party’s choice for speaker.
Nine days after an extraordinary move by eight Republican rebels to remove former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif, the House is further shaken by his decision to depart. Who will be able to bring the divided and slim majority of 221 House Republicans together?
Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., stated that Republicans should proceed with Jordan as their choice shortly after Scalise withdrew.
“I voted for Jim Jordan in the conference election yesterday and I remain committed to doing everything I can to help elect him the next Speaker of the House,” Banks said in a statement. “He is a conservative fighter and a leader who can unite our party.”
Reps. Matt Gaetz of Florida, Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, the leader of the Freedom Caucus, and Kevin Hern of Oklahoma, the head of the Republican Study Committee, all voiced support for Jordan.
Jordan is a right-wing firebrand who chairs the Judiciary Committee, but it’s uncertain if he could succeed where Scalise failed by garnering the 217 votes required to win the position.
Asked whether she could count five “Never Jordan” votes, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., replied: “There’s probably five ‘Never Everybodys’ — that’s the problem.”
At 10 a.m. on Friday, House Republicans will gather once more in private at the Capitol to choose a new speaker candidate. On Thursday night, Jordan avoided queries about whether he will make another run for office.
At 10 a.m. on Friday, House Republicans will gather once more in private at the Capitol to choose a new speaker candidate. On Thursday night, Jordan avoided queries about whether he will make another run for office.
Others, including Republican Speaker Pro Tem Patrick McHenry of North Carolina and Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota, remained mum about their intentions.
After three hours of conversations with GOP opponents and allies, Scalise unexpectedly departed after failing to convince even one of his opponents to vote yes. The fact that he would not be able to secure 217 votes on the House floor became apparent at that point.
Any Republican speaker candidate can afford to lose only four GOP votes due to the GOP’s razor-thin majority; an analysis by NBC News found that more than a dozen Republicans had come out against Scalise.
“It didn’t change my mind about how I’m going to vote,” Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., one of the detractors, said after he met with Scalise on Thursday. “But it was good and constructive. I think there’s differences of opinion.”
As he left the majority leader’s office Thursday, another Scalise opponent, Rep. Michael Cloud, R-Texas, said, “I don’t think the votes are there, and I think we need to get moving on.”
Speaking to reporters Thursday night, Scalise declined to say whether he was throwing his support behind another candidate. “I’m not getting involved,” he said.
Gaetz, one of the McCarthy opponents Scalise most successfully won over, was among those who supported him. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Lauren Boebert of Colorado, two Republicans who had voted to keep McCarthy in the office, abandoned him, potentially sealing his demise.
Rep. Mark Alford, a Missouri Republican serving his first term, said he is unsure of what will happen next.
“I have no earthly idea. I’m a freshman caught up in this maelstrom. We’re a ship that doesn’t have a rudder right now,” he said. “And I’m thoroughly disappointed in the process. And I just pray to God that we find something.”
