House Republicans Drop Jim Jordan After He Loses on Third Speaker Ballot

After three failed speaker ballots this week, House Republicans voted to drop Rep. Jim Jordan as their nominee for speaker.

House Republicans have decided not to support Jim Jordan as their choice for Speaker of the House. This happened after he lost the speaker vote for the third time. The vote was done secretly behind closed doors, and Jordan lost by a big margin.

Twenty-five House Republicans voted against Jordan, and 112 voted against him in the secret ballot, while only 86 supported him. This means he won't be the nominee for Speaker.

This leaves the House without a nominee for Speaker more than two weeks after Kevin McCarthy was removed from the position. It's a problem because the Speaker is third in line for the presidency.

Jordan's supporters had hoped for a different outcome. They even pressured lawmakers and threatened them with primary opponents if they didn't support Jordan. But that didn't work, and some lawmakers were unhappy with this pressure. There were also reports of death threats against lawmakers who opposed Jordan, which may have made the opposition stronger.

Before the vote, Jordan held a short news conference and said that Congress needs to work for the American people. He seemed undeterred by the opposition, and instead of stepping aside, he suggested there might be more votes for Speaker in the future.

Kevin McCarthy, who nominated Jordan, praised him and said he's ready for the job. However, most House Republicans didn't agree with this choice.

In the latest vote, there was also support for Rep. Patrick McHenry, who could act as a temporary Speaker. Some lawmakers from both parties want to give him more power to address important issues.

The situation is complicated, and it's unclear who will be the nominee for Speaker in the future. Jordan is known for being a strong ally of former President Donald Trump and has been involved in election claims. He's considered one of the most conservative members of Congress.

Despite having the support of many House conservatives, Jordan faced opposition from various groups within the Republican Party. After the vote, lawmakers were trying to figure out the next steps, and there were discussions about possible consequences for those who opposed Jordan.

On the other side, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called for more bipartisan cooperation to reopen the House and move forward.