Jordan Wins Republican Nomination For Speaker Race

After House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) dropped out of the House Speaker race on Thursday, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) has become the Republican nominee for the role.

A vote within the House Republican Conference initially nominated Scalise, but the Louisiana congressman dropped out of the race after he was unable to unite Republicans around his candidacy.

“I just shared with my colleagues that I’m withdrawing my name as a candidate for the speaker designate,” Scalise told reporters Thursday evening.

“Our conference still has to come together and is not there,” he added. “There are still some people that have their own agendas, and I was very clear we have to have everybody put their agendas on the side and focus on what this country needs.”

With Scalise out of the race, Jordan has once again stepped up — ultimately winning a Republican vote for the speakership nomination on Friday 124-81, which is more support than Scalise had.

Jordan ended up having a last-minute opponent: Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA), who was widely condemned on social media by conservatives after his announcement.

“You are not running to be Speaker. You are running to stop Jim Jordan from being Speaker because protecting the interests of DC and Ukraine is more important to you than representing your voters. Drop out and go away,” wrote commentator Greg Price, responding to Scott’s announcement on X, formerly known as Twitter.

After Jordan won the Republican nomination, Scott ultimately ended up calling for the House GOP to rally around Jordan’s candidacy.

“I highly respect Jim Jordan. He is an asset to the Republican Party and our nominee for Speaker. Our conference has spoken, and now we must unite behind Jordan so we can get Congress back to work,” he wrote in a post on X.

Meanwhile, other so-called “moderates” and establishment Republicans are skeptical about his candidacy — and many Democrats have expressed their preference for Scalise over Jordan.

Chairman of the House Democrat Caucus Pete Aguilar (D-CA) argued in a statement on Thursday that Scalise is someone Democrats can talk to — while claiming that Jordan “is dangerous for our democracy.”