The momentum supporting Ohio Republican Jim Jordan’s campaign to become the next House Speaker experienced a setback on Tuesday as he failed to secure the necessary votes on the first ballot.
Vote Breakdown:
- House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D., N.Y.): 212 votes
- Jim Jordan: 200 votes
- Other candidates: 20 votes
- Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.): 6 votes
In order to clinch the position, Jordan needed at least 217 votes. Though he managed to gain support from a few undecided members leading up to the vote, it remained uncertain whether he could secure victory on the initial ballot.
Notably, seven House members cast their votes for House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R., La.), who was initially nominated as McCarthy’s successor but withdrew from the race last week after falling short in vote count. Jordan’s nomination took place last Friday.
It is worth mentioning that McCarthy himself required 15 ballots to secure the role of speaker in January and held the position for nine tumultuous months until House members voted to remove him in early October. Since then, the House has struggled to function properly without a speaker.
This is an ongoing development, and we will provide further updates as they unfold.
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