Rep. Jim Jordan is racing to shore up support for his bid for speaker among skeptical GOP House members, but an entrenched bloc of lawmakers opposed to him leaves the Ohio Republican with an uphill climb ahead of a planned Tuesday vote on the House floor.
On the floor, Jordan can afford to lose only four Republicans if every member votes, because a speaker needs a majority of the full House to be elected. But last week, 55 Republicans voted inside the GOP conference against committing to supporting Jordan on the floor – and a senior Republican House member told CNN he believes there are still roughly 40 “no” votes.
The senior Republican told CNN he’s spoken to 20 members willing to block Jordan’s path to the floor in a potential roll-call vote Tuesday.
But another GOP source familiar with the matter said Jordan has had positive conversations with members, and believes by Tuesday evening he will be elected speaker. The source said it was “likely” the vote would happen Tuesday, and noted that Jordan may decide to go to multiple ballots on the floor if necessary to win a majority.
Jordan won over a key endorsement on Monday morning: House Armed Services Chairman Mike Rogers. The Alabama Republican wrote on X that he had “two cordial, thoughtful, and productive conversations over the past two days” with Jordan about passing legislation, including the annual defense authorization bill and the farm bill.
“Since I was first elected to the House, I have always been a team player and supported what the majority of the Republican Conference agrees to,” Rogers said.
Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Fox News Monday morning that he feels “very good about where Jim Jordan is at.”
House Democratic leadership sent a notice to members that indicated an expected vote at noon ET on Tuesday.
If Jordan is…
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