Jordan Fails To Win Speakership on First Vote, Vows To Fight on House Floor, as Frustrated Republicans, Democrats Mull Other Options

Multiple GOP members who voted against Jordan say they have no intention of changing their position.

AP/J. Scott Applewhite
Representative Jim Jordan talks with reporters at the Capitol, October 13, 2023. AP/J. Scott Applewhite

The GOP’s nominee for speaker of the House, Congressman Jim Jordan, failed to win the gavel in the first round of voting due to a number of defections among his fellow Republicans and a united front from the Democratic caucus. The Ohio firebrand has vowed to fight on the House floor until he wins the post. 

Mr. Jordan lost by a vote of 200-232. He lost 20 members of the GOP, more than had been expected in the run-up to the vote. In total, six voted for the former speaker, Congressman Kevin McCarthy, and seven voted for the majority leader, Congressman Steve Scalise, who was nominated for speaker last week but withdrew for want of enough support. Three voted for a former congressman, Lee Zeldin, and receiving one vote each were Congressman Tom Emmer, Congressman Tom Cole, Congressman Mike Garcia, and Congressman Thomas Massie. The minority leader, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, won all 212 Democratic votes. 

Following the first vote, Congressman Carlos Gimenez, who voted for Mr. McCarthy, said he would not support Mr. Jordan going forward. He told reporters just off the House floor that Mr. Jordan’s supporters are using “intimidation tactics” to win his vote, directing public phone calls to his office and stirring up animosity toward him on social media. 

Multiple GOP members who voted against Mr. Jordan say they will not change their votes going forward. Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, who voted for Mr. Scalise, his good friend, on Tuesday, told reporters on Monday night that his colleagues ought not to “intimidate and pressure” him into voting for Mr. Jordan. After the vote, he said simply, “I am where I am,” with respect to voting for Mr. Scalise. 

Mr. Jordan was clearly struggling to win the support of his conference with just minutes to go before the vote. Shortly before the voting began, he was quite animated while talking to Congressman Mike Simpson, who ultimately voted for Mr. Scalise.

Democrats, who suffered no defections during the House floor vote, are enjoying a 100 percent attendance record, including the presence of Congresswoman Mary Peltola, who has been largely absent from the Capitol building since her husband was killed in a plane crash in Alaska last month. 

Mr. Jeffries is reportedly maneuvering behind the scenes to undermine Mr. Jordan by working with some House Republicans. Punchbowl News reported before the speaker vote on Tuesday that Mr. Jeffries hopes to secure the election of the speaker pro tempore, Congressman Patrick McHenry, at least temporarily, by drawing in the support of some Republicans frustrated at their caucus’s inability to govern. 

If Mr. Jordan does eventually win the speakership, it would mark a dramatic turning point for congressional Republicans in both political posturing and actual policy. 

The most significant impact on policy will be with respect to foreign aid and the federal budget. Mr. Jordan has not committed to putting an aid package for Ukraine on the House floor, which the former speaker, Mr. McCarthy, previously said he would support. 

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has pledged that “not another penny” should go to the besieged nation under a House GOP majority, said on Monday night that Mr. Jordan likely would not put any Ukraine aid package on the floor. 

The chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressman Mike McCaul, reluctantly endorsed Mr. Jordan for the speakership on Monday, highlighting the Ohio congressman’s alleged support for an Israel–Ukraine joint aid package. A large bipartisan group of senators will also likely put pressure on a potential Speaker Jordan, should he win the gavel in the coming days. 

Mr. McCaul also tells reporters that he may abandon Mr. Jordan on subsequent ballots. “If he has 21 no’s, I don’t see how he can recover,” Mr. McCaul says. “For me, the wild card is McCarthy coming back.” 

One option for the House GOP is for a small number of frustrated Republicans to work with all 212 Democrats to back what some have called a “unity speaker” — a moderate Republican who is open to working with Democrats. The most common name thrown out is Congressman Patrick McHenry, who currently serves as speaker pro tempore. 

Following the floor vote, Mr. Jeffries told the Sun that Democrats “are ready to get to work, we just need to find a bipartisan path forward.” Early Tuesday, he told his Democratic colleagues that they should vote to empower Mr. McHenry as a full-time speaker until the GOP can get its house in order. “Those conversations have been ongoing for the last seven days,” he said as he walked into his office. 


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