House Republicans who had previously floated aligning with Democrats to oppose Representative Jim Jordan, a Republican from Ohio, in his bid to become Speaker revealed on Monday that they would instead back the conservative lawmaker.
Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California, was unexpectedly ousted from the position earlier this month, marking the first time in American history that a motion to vacate the chair was successful. Jordan won the House Republican nomination to pursue the Speaker position at the end of last week, yet a number of Republicans reportedly considered making a deal with Democrats to install House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, as Speaker rather than support Jordan.
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, a Republican from Alabama and one of the lawmakers to consider a deal with Jeffries, announced on Monday that he had spoken with Jeffries and would support his candidacy for House Speaker. The pivot from Rogers came after four members of the Alabama Republican Party executive committee threatened to file a ballot challenge against the lawmaker.
“Since I was first elected to the House, I have always been a team player,” Rogers said. “Our Republican majority will be stronger to fight Joe Biden’s reckless agenda for America.”
Representative Ken Calvert, a Republican from California; Representative Ann Wagner, a Republican from Missouri; and Vern Buchanan, a Republican from Florida, all revealed on Monday that they would support Jordan after expressing a willingness to make a deal with Jeffries. Jordan, whose party holds a narrow majority in the lower chamber, can only afford to lose four Republican votes in the Speaker race, which is currently scheduled for Tuesday.
Jordan released a letter on Monday calling on fellow Republican lawmakers to unite around his candidacy, asserting that “the country and our conference cannot afford us attacking each other right now.” He added that the “differences between us and our Democrat colleagues vastly outweigh our internal divisions.”
