Trump’s ally, Jim Jordan, lost in the first round of voting in the House of Representatives. The Congress chamber is currently without a Speaker. Message Ticker.
- Jim Jordan fails: Republicans can’t agree on a new speaker
- Kevin McCarthy Voted: The US House of Representatives is looking for a new Speaker
- Dauerchaos I am US-Parliament: The US Congress chamber is mostly deadlocked
Updated as of October 18, 2:45 am: Jim Jordan, the current chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, is trying to break through intra-party opposition after losing the first round to take the third-highest office in the United States. The next round of elections is scheduled for Wednesday at 11am (local time; 5pm CEST) in a chamber that has been deadlocked for two weeks.
Ahead of Tuesday’s vote, Jordan also appeared to lack a majority. Many moderate Republicans have big concerns about Jordan.
“I would encourage people not to be surprised if it takes a few rounds,” Republican Rep. Austin Scott told right-wing news channel Fox News, referring to the presidential election. According to representative Scott Perry, Jordan fought several rounds in his previous career as a wrestler. “I think he can last until the end.”
Elections for US House of Representatives: Jordan lost in first round
Updated as of October 17, 8:31 PM: Jim Jordan, an ultra-conservative US Republican, initially failed to elect a new speaker of the House of Representatives. Former President Donald Trump’s ally narrowly missed the required majority of 217 votes in the first vote in the chamber of Congress on Tuesday. In addition to Democrats, 20 Republicans voted against the 59-year-old hardliner, who ran to succeed President Kevin McCarthy, who was ousted two weeks ago. Jordan announced that he would run in the second round of voting. His predecessor, McCarthy, needed 15 attempts to be elected Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Republicans vote for Jim Jordan
Report from October 17: WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, an ultra-conservative Republican, is seeking to be elected as the new Speaker of the House of Representatives on Tuesday (October 17th). However, his chances of success are uncertain. The vote is scheduled for 12:00 noon local time (6:00 p.m. CEST) in the chamber of Congress, which has been largely stalled for two weeks. However, many moderate Republicans have significant concerns about Jordan, a right-wing hardliner who is a confidant of former President Donald Trump.
Republicans have a narrow majority in the 221-member House of Representatives. Therefore, it is unclear whether Jordan will be able to achieve a majority of 217 votes in a plenary session. If all of President Joe Biden’s 212 Democratic members vote against the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Jordan can allow a maximum of four defections from his own ranks.
US House of Representatives: Search for Kevin McCarthy’s successor
Trump-backed Jordan was nominated on Friday (October 13) in Republicans’ chaotic search to succeed House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who was ousted in early October. Earlier in the day, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, originally nominated by the Republican Party, threw a tantrum after it became clear he would lose the majority needed for the third-highest state office in the plenary session.
However, Jordan, known for his aggressive political style, is more controversial than Scalise. After Jordan’s nomination, according to media reports, 55 Republicans signaled in a secret ballot that they would not support the Ohio representative in the chamber. Over the weekend, the hardliner and those around him put more pressure on opponents within the party to get behind Jordan.
“We all need to continue to pull together and get back to work,” Jordan wrote on the texting service X (formerly Twitter) on Monday. Republicans wanted to hold consultations in the evening.
The US House of Representatives is currently unable to act
The dispute among Republicans has long-term consequences: Without a leader, the House of Representatives is largely paralyzed. This means, among other things, that Congress cannot decide on further military aid to Israel, which is under attack by the radical Islamist Palestinian organization Hamas, or to Ukraine, which is under attack by Russia. The US also faces the threat of a so-called shutdown in mid-November without a budget solution.
That’s why pressure is mounting on Republicans to come to an agreement soon. If Jordan fails in his efforts to get the conservative wing fully behind him, he may withdraw his bid for the presidency, as Scalise did. But he can stick to a full referendum despite all opposition—and, for example, try to break the opposition of his opponents with a series of votes.
In January, then-President McCarthy called for 15 rounds of voting to confirm “Speaker” in the United States. But nine months later, the California representative was ousted from the House of Representatives in a historic coup by right-wing hardliners in his own party. The fallout was a result of a budget dispute over additional support for Ukraine.
Jordan is considered a staunch Trump supporter
Jordan, McCarthy’s potential successor, has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2007. He began his political career on the right-wing fringes of the Republican Party, but over the years he became a central figure in the party, which was moving further and further to the right. Jordan is one of the key players behind efforts to impeach US President Joe Biden over his son Hunter Biden’s alleged involvement in controversial foreign dealings.
Jordan, a former wrestler who prefers to appear jacketless, has been a staunch supporter and defender of Donald Trump for years. He was one of the founding members of the Freedom Caucus, an influential right-wing parliamentary group. Jordan is also a welcome guest on right-wing media outlets, including the News Channel Fox News. (skr/AFP)
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