Jim Jordan loses second vote for House speaker amid steep GOP opposition
Originally Published: 18 OCT 23 05:11 ET Updated: 18 OCT 23 13:24 ET By Clare Foran, Haley Talbot, Lauren Fox and Manu Raju, CNN
(CNN) — Republican Rep. Jim Jordan again failed to win the House speaker’s gavel in a second vote on Wednesday, a loss that raises serious questions over whether he has a viable path forward as he confronts steep opposition and the House remains in a state of paralysis.
The defeat for the Ohio Republican comes after he fell short in an initial round of voting on Tuesday after 20 Republicans voted against him, a high number and far more than the handful he could afford to lose given the GOP’s narrow majority.
As pressure grows on Republicans to find a way out of the leadership crisis, some are pushing to expand the powers of the interim speaker, Republican Rep. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina. Republicans are discussing the possibility of bringing forward a resolution to empower McHenry as soon as Wednesday afternoon, two sources told CNN.
Without a speaker, the chamber is effectively frozen, a precarious position that comes amid conflict abroad and a potential government shutdown next month.
Jordan dug in Wednesday morning, saying he is going to stay in the race and rejected the idea of empowering McHenry, saying the House needs a permanent Republican speaker.
“We got to get a speaker so we can open the House, so I’m going to get there,” he said.
A resolution to empower McHenry would need Democratic support since many Republicans oppose the idea. The move could give Democrats an opportunity to seek some concessions from Republicans in exchange for their votes.
Jordan is a polarizing figure in the speaker’s fight, a complicating factor in his effort to lock down votes. He is a staunch ally of former President Donald Trump, has a longstanding reputation as a conservative agitator and helped found the hardline House Freedom Caucus. As the chairman of the powerful House Judiciary Committee, he has also been a key figure in House GOP-led investigations.
It took former Speaker Kevin McCarthy 15 rounds of voting in January to secure the gavel. But Jordan faces an uphill climb amid the deep divisions within the House GOP conference and the resistance he faces.
As the speaker battle drags on, tensions and frustration have risen among House Republicans.
GOP Rep. Don Bacon’s wife received anonymous text messages warning her husband to back Jordan. Bacon has been a vocal holdout against Jordan and was one of the 20 Republican members that did not back Jordan on the floor in Tuesday’s vote.
“Your husband will not hold any political office ever again. What a disappointment and failure he is,” read one of the messages sent to Bacon’s wife and obtained by CNN through Bacon.
Bacon’s wife responded to that text saying, “he has more courage than you. You won’t put your name to your statements.”
One of the 20 who voted against Jordan in the first round of voting later said he would support the Ohio Republican on the next ballot, but several Republicans indicated they would not be swayed, leaving Jordan’s fate up in the air.
Opponents to his speaker’s bid so far have included centrist Republicans concerned that the face of the House GOP would be a conservative hardliner as well as lawmakers still furious at the small group of Republicans who forced out Kevin McCarthy and then opposed House Majority Leader Steve Scalise’s bid for the gavel.
Scalise initially defeated Jordan inside the GOP conference to become the speaker nominee, but later dropped out of the race amid opposition to his candidacy.
This story and headline have been updated with additional developments.
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