H ouse Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) will be the Republican nominee for speaker after he defeated Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) in a simple majority vote in a closed-door meeting on Wednesday.
The speakership vote is expected to head to the House floor as early as Wednesday afternoon, when Scalise will need at least 217 votes to become speaker. Democrats are expected to nominate House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), meaning the election will come down to a party-line vote.
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Although Scalise secured the nomination with a 113-99 vote, it also does not ensure other members won’t nominate Jordan for the speakership — possibly setting the stage for a multi-round election like the one lawmakers experienced in January, when it took Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) 15 rounds to secure the leadership position.
There are already at least three GOP members who have indicated they will vote for someone other than Scalise for speaker. He can only afford to lose four votes.
Rep. Max Miller (R-OH) said he will not vote for anyone but Jordan on the floor. He said until Jordan takes himself out of the race, he won’t even consider voting for Scalise or any other candidate.
But even then, he’s not sure if he’ll vote for Scalise, he said.
“But you know what, we just had 6% of the conference dictate the speaker of the House," Miller said. "So why would I let 51% dictate the next speaker? The numbers don't make any sense across the board.“
“I will continue to vote for Jim Jordan," he added. "I never said [Scalise] is the wrong leader. I just think right now we need to reevaluate all leadership."
The closed-door election was conducted through a secret ballot, so it’s not clear which members supported which candidates except for those who have publicly confirmed their votes. However, when the motion comes to the floor, members will cast their votes through a verbal roll call.
The vote comes after McCarthy was ousted from the position last week after eight House Republicans joined all Democrats in voting to vacate the speaker’s chair. He later said he would not run again and asked members not to nominate him.
Scalise said on his way into the GOP conference that the first order of business under his speakership would be to “bring a strong resolution expressing support for Israel.”
Also among Scalise’s top priorities if elected speaker would be advancing the House’s 12 appropriations bills ahead of the Nov. 17 deadline, after which federal funding is set to lapse. Congress passed a stopgap measure to fund the government until then, but McCarthy’s ouster has left lawmakers with a tight deadline to get all their spending legislation in order.
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Scalise and Jordan had emerged as the top two possible nominees for the speakership, with Jordan leading the way in endorsements over the last week.
With Scalise poised to become speaker, Republicans will need to hold another leadership election to choose a majority leader. At least two members, Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) and Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK), have declared their candidacies.
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