(Casey Harper, The Center Square) — House Republicans have nominated Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, to be speaker of the House, but it remains unclear if Jordan can get the needed 217 votes from his own fractured party.
Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga., a lesser known member, threw his name in the hat for the position as well and got significant support in the nomination vote, though possibly only as a vote against Jordan instead of a true vote for Scott.
Later, though, Scott threw his support behind Jordan.
“I highly respect Jim Jordan. He is an asset to the Republican Party and our nominee for Speaker,” Scott wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Our conference has spoken, and now we must unite behind Jordan so we can get Congress back to work.”
Jordan has conservative chops and support from the party base, but many moderates may not be willing to go his way.
“For years, I’ve stayed out of House leadership elections, but this time I endorsed [Jordan],” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, wrote on X. “Jim is a good friend and a strong conservative. My philosophy on political endorsements is to support the strongest conservative who can win. That is Jim Jordan.”
U.S. House Republican Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., was the leading contender to be the speaker of the House Thursday morning, but he later withdrew his bid before taking it to a public vote after he failed to get enough support.
Meanwhile, lawmakers in the House face a partial government shutdown in mid-November along with growing pressure to supply funds, ammunition, and weapons to both Ukraine and Israel, which has declared war on the terrorist group Hamas.
Until lawmakers land on a speaker, legislation cannot move forward.
As The Center Square previously reported, another key issue for lawmakers to handle is whether one lawmaker will still be able to file a motion to vacate the speaker, an unusual allowance given by McCarthy to secure the needed votes after the series of speakership votes earlier this year. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., used that very allowance to file the motion that led to the ousting of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
The current Speaker Pro Tempore is Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., who will determine the times of any speaker votes until a lawmaker wins the speakership.
“The DC Uniparty does not want a Speaker who would threaten their status quo,” Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., wrote on X. “We need a strong conservative for Speaker of the House!”
