WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans rejected Rep. Jim Jordan for House speaker on a first ballot Tuesday, as an unexpectedly numerous 20 holdouts denied the hard-charging ally of Donald Trump the GOP majority needed to seize the gavel.
More voting is expected as Jordan works to shore up support to replace the ousted Kevin McCarthy for the job but the House immediately went into recess as the firebrand leader of the GOP's hard-right flank struggled to take a central seat of U.S. power.
But with public pressure bearing down on lawmakers from Trump's allies including Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity, it's unclear how long the holdouts can last. Jordan swiftly flipped dozens of detractors in a matter of days, shoring up Republicans who have few options left. With the House Republican majority narrowly held at 221-212, Jordan can afford to lose only a few votes to reach the 217 majority threshold, if there are no further absences.
Making the official nominating speech was another top Trump ally, GOP conference chairwoman Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, who drew from the lessons of the Old Testament before declaring Jordan will be “We the People’s speaker.” After a late-evening meeting Monday at the Capitol turned into a venting session of angry Republicans, Jordan acknowledged: “We’ve got a few more people to talk to, listen to.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who engineered McCarthy's ouster by a handful of hard-liners, publicly praised each lawmaker who has flipped to Jordan's column — and berated those who have not.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
CBS News Anchor's Reaction To GOP Rep.'s Take On Jim Jordan Says It AllRon Dicker is a general assignment reporter at HuffPost. He has covered sports, entertainment and many other beats in his journalism career, and has lived in New York City for more than 20 years.
Read more »
A Rep. Jim Jordan speakership could be a 'positive' for bond market: StrategistCongressman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) is running to be Speaker of the House of Representatives. With potential policy leaning towards spending cuts—the question...
Read more »
Rep. Mike Rogers Flips, Will Support Jim Jordan for SpeakerJordan still doesn't have the Republican votes to win the Speakership.
Read more »
Former Sen. Claire McCaskill Delivers Ominous Prediction For Rep. Jim JordanSpanish/English journalist covering a wide range of topics -- from breaking news and politics to popular culture, street art, memes, satirical takes, environmental issues, social media trends and more.
Read more »
Jim Jordan Loses First Vote For Speaker's Gavel As Moderates Hold FirmArthur Delaney started working for HuffPost in 2009. He covers politics and the economy. Previously he wrote for the Washington City Paper, The Hill newspaper, Slate Magazine, and ABCNews.com. His email is arthurhuffpost.com.
Read more »
Republicans reject Rep. Jim Jordan for House speaker on the first ballot, but more votes are aheadWASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans rejected Rep. Jim Jordan for House speaker on Tuesday on the first ballot, as holdouts denied the hard-charging ally of Donald Trump the majority needed to seize the gavel.
Read more »