The conservative from Ohio’s run for leadership of the Republican Party in the disorganized House came to an abrupt and quick end as a result.
On Friday, in a stunning change of events, Jim Jordan was defeated in a vote held internally by the Republican Party to demonstrate the party’s confidence in him continuing to serve as the speaker designee.
Following his third unsuccessful vote on the House floor as a candidate for speaker, the Republican from Ohio is no longer his party’s choice to head the House, a doom that was sealed by a secret ballot taken by the GOP shortly after the vote.
It was an unanticipatedly swift end to the Ohio conservative’s quest to lead the disorganized Republican conference, and it was an indication that the floundering party is getting fed up on its 17th day without a speaker. As the next group of aspirational Republicans deliberates whether or not to launch their own campaigns for speaker of the house, lawmakers have decided to leave Washington for the weekend.
However, the vast majority of Republicans recognize that regardless of whether or not they take into account fresh faces, there is still no obvious way for them to unite their fractured conference. In just this one month, they have already voted against two candidates for speaker: Jordan and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise. Additionally, they have voted against previous Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
McCarthy gave voice to a concern that is rising within the GOP: The party’s failure to control the half of Congress that it barely won does not auger well for its broader future. McCarthy’s comments reflect a mood that is growing within the GOP.
McCarthy, who had been in support of Jordan, said, “I’m concerned about where we go from here,” “I find it hard to believe, and it puts our party in a precarious position overall,” she said.
Since Jordan had sought the internal vote with backers planning to cite it as a show of sustained support for his campaign, his loss of the speaker nod from his party came as a bit of a surprise. However, the result did not come as a complete surprise. Instead, the results of the secret voting showed that many more House Republicans wanted Jordan to be removed from the contest, despite the fact that his public opposition never reached more than 25 votes.
The next contest to succeed him is anticipated to be competitive, despite the fact that Congress is dealing with a significant backlog of urgent matters that it is unable to address while the House is not in session. The impending deadline for the closure of the federal government, which is less than a month away, and an emergency funding request from the Biden administration for more than 100 million dollars that includes help to both Israel and Ukraine are at the top of that list.
At this point, at least one Republican, Representative Kevin Hern of Oklahoma, has said that he will participate in the race. Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-Texas), whose name has been mentioned by leaders of the Texas delegation, has admitted that he is “considering” a run for president. Arrington is the second Republican lawmaker to make this announcement. It is highly anticipated that Representatives Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) and Jack Bergman (R-Michigan) will also enter the campaign for the speakership of the House of Representatives.
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Florida), a another potential future leader, signaled his interest in running for office on Friday. Donalds explained his plan to the reporters by saying, “What I’m going to do is, frankly, sit down and think.”
Mark Green, the Republican Chair of the Homeland Security Committee in Tennessee, stated that he is also giving the idea some thought and that he will make a decision by the end of the day on Friday.
According to various persons who are aware with the intentions of the GOP, even more candidates are anticipated to file in advance of an internal deadline that will take place on Sunday at noon before another candidate forum that will take place on Monday evening at 6:30 p.m. Acting Speaker Patrick McHenry (R-North Carolina) indicated that a full vote might take place as soon as Tuesday morning.
According to two persons who are acquainted with the private deliberations, a total of 122 Republicans voted to remove Jordan from his position as the nominee of their party, while 86 Republicans felt he should continue to be their pick. Five members were present but did not vote.
Rep. Ralph Norman (R-South Carolina), who has supported Jordan for a very long time, referred to the situation as “unbelievable.” “We got rid of a genuine conservative who had the potential to become a speaker.”
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-New York), who was opposed to Jordan’s candidacy, stated that the Ohioan did the “right” thing by stepping aside, and he described it as a “very gracious” withdrawal.
“It’s going to be necessary for us to reach an agreement. Obviously, we were unable to accomplish the final two. And because of this, we discover that we are in a position in which we are going to have to return to the drawing board.
The more important question for the Republican-controlled House was brought up by another Republican.
Who among you can earn a score of 217? Rep. Andy Barr, a Republican from Kentucky, asked.
