Jordan continues speaker bid, meets with GOP holdouts

The House will not hold a third speaker vote for Rep. Jim Jordan Thursday, GOP leadership announced.

"Members are advised that no votes are expected in the House tonight," Rep. Tom Emmer, the House majority whip, told his colleagues. The House will reconvene Friday at 10 a.m.

Jordan, the Republican nominee for speaker, spent much of the day talking with holdouts following following a second failed vote to win the top job in the House.

House Republicans huddled behind closed doors for nearly four hours earlier in the day after plans for an afternoon vote. Jordan, R-Ohio, backed a plan to remain nominee for speaker but grant additional powers to Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., who is currently the speaker pro tempore. The proposal for an interim speaker was not well received among many Republicans, Fox News reported.

Jordan, R-Ohio, also met in private with several colleagues Thursday afternoon, many of whom said they had not changed their minds about his speaker bid.

Rep. John Rutherford, R-Fla., told reporters that the meeting wasn't about changing the minds of the holdouts, but about changing Jordan's mind.

“He failed his moment of leadership when he failed Steve Scalise and that was pretty much everyone’s opinion," Rutherford said.

Following the conversation with holdouts, Jordan said "it was a good discussion."

Fox News' Thomas Phippen contributed reporting.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) is followed by reporters after leaving an hours-long House Republican members meeting at the U.S. Capitol October 19, 2023 in Washington, DC.

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan left a closed-door meeting with holdouts who have voted against him for Speaker largely ignoring reporters’ questions.

All Jordan said was that he had a “good discussion” before ducking into his office, ignoring questions on whether there will be a vote tonight or if he is dropping out of the race.

Ousted ex-Speaker Kevin McCarthy similarly ignored most of reporters’ questions when leaving the meeting. McCarthy has been a vocal Jordan supporter.

At least two Republicans opposing Jordan left the meeting indicating their minds were unchanged.

Rep. John Rutherford told reporters he was still against Jordan and said, “He failed his moment of leadership when he failed Steve Scalise and that was pretty much everyone’s opinion.”

Rep. Carlos Gimenez indicated Jordan couldn’t give him anything to change his mind. “We want nothing, we don't want to make any deals,” he told reporters.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) told House Republicans to "grow up" Thursday as the GOP conference appears no closer to determining who will be the next speaker.

“Today, the Senate unanimously passed a resolution affirming their support for Israel, President Biden returned from Israel and is preparing to address the nation, and House Democrats stand ready to get back to work," DNC spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said in a statement.

"All of the adults are in the room working, except for House Republicans who are – literally – cursing at one another and fighting among themselves. It’s time for the House GOP to grow up, pull themselves together, and join Democrats in working for the American people," she added.

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, vowed Thursday to continue his bid for the speakership after failing in two previous votes on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Jordan is meeting with the group holdouts in an effort to garner their support.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan is now meeting with several holdouts who have refused to back him for speaker in the last two House-wide votes.

It comes amid widespread uncertainty about the path forward for Jordan’s candidacy.

House Republicans huddled behind closed doors for nearly four hours earlier in the day after plans for an afternoon vote, Jordan’s third round trying for the gavel, appeared to be scuttled as he faces an uphill climb to convince as many as 20 holdouts to change their minds.

Jordan ignored questions from reporters walking into the meeting.

Interim Speaker Patrick McHenry called Jordan “our nominee,” but ignored questions about whether there would be another vote today.

Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., the temporary leader of the House of Representatives and the speaker pro tempore, arrives to the Republican caucus meeting at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

House conservatives are heaping criticism on a plan to temporarily empower interim Speaker Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., to move legislation, an effort that's been gaining momentum as Republicans' struggle to find a new speaker drags on for over two weeks. 

"Oh, Hell no. Hades no," Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas, told reporters when asked about it.

Fallon estimated that two-thirds of the Republican conference also don't back the plan. 

Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., told Fox News Digital he was "opposed" to it as well. He called the plan the creation of a "Democrat-deal speaker" on X.

Both had been supporting Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, for speaker. Jordan failed to clinch a 217-vote majority on two rounds of voting so far, and an expected third round was never formally set as House Republicans huddle for hours behind closed doors trying to plot a path forward. 

Now, two sources have confirmed a report to Fox News Digital that Jordan would back a plan to empower McHenry through early January and remain speaker-designate for the time being.  

"It is enabling one person to continue to try to campaign. Why [can't] other people campaign at the same time? So I'd find if we basically allowed [McHenry] to do that, is it fair for us to just put all our eggs in one basket, who's losing votes? Probably not," Murphy said.

Fox News' Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, speaks to the media after a Republican Caucus meeting, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Rep. Jim Jordan says he wants to speak to the Republican holdouts who voted against his speakership bid, just as there have been moves to empower Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry.

Jordan had indicated there would not be a vote Thursday after 20 Republicans voted against him on Wednesday. Jordan was expected to lose votes in the third ballot. He can only afford a handful of Republican defections.

Two sources have confirmed a report to Fox News Digital that Jordan would back a plan to empower McHenry through early January and remain speaker-designate for the time being.  

"I'm still running for speaker and I plan to go to the floor and get the votes and win this race," Jordan told reporters.

“But I want to go talk with a few of my colleagues particularly want to talk with the 20 individuals who voted against me so that we can move forward and begin to work for the American people."

Fox News' Liz Elkind and Kelly Phares contributed to this report.

GOP Rep. Marc Molinaro, R-N.Y., predicted to reporters that there would be "action” on the House floor as Republicans try to forge a way forward on finding a House speaker.

“I suspect we’re going to take some action today,” Molinaro said when asked about a temporary plan to empower interim Speaker Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., to move legislation.

But there are mixed messages coming out of the room where House Republicans have been huddling for roughly three hours.

Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., told reporters “it’s not going to happen” when asked if the resolution would move forward.

It became clear hours into the meeting on Thursday that a large number of Republicans are opposed to the move for various reasons.

“I think that is the decision as I understand it. And I think even Patrick, to his credit and to his fidelity to the U.S. constitution, we cannot just drop powers in the lap of somebody. We have to elect a speaker,” Donalds said.

Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., the temporary leader of the House of Representatives and the speaker pro tempore, arrives to the Republican caucus meeting at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

The House of Representatives will soon recess after a third speaker's vote was put on hold on Thursday -- after GOP nominee Jim Jordan failed to gain enough support in the previous two.

House Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry left the GOP conference meeting saying he was going to the House floor, but would just be recessing.

Sources told Fox that Jordan had canceled the third vote to elect a speaker and will instead back a move to empower McHenry until January.

Jordan lost support on the second ballot yesterday -- scoring only 199 votes yesterday after getting only 200 in the first ballot. He needed 217 to become speaker, and could afford few Republican defections.

Fox News was told he was expected to lose further votes in a ballot on Thursday. Jordan's team had said they intended to keep going with a third vote, but on Thursday the vote was canceled.

It is now more than two weeks since Republicans ousted then Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

The morning sun illuminates the House of Representatives at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Potential challengers are waiting in the wings for Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, to step away from the race for House speaker after he failed to clinch a majority of support in back-to-back House-wide votes.

Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Mich., a retired Marine Corps general, is "prepared" to step into the race if Jordan falters, his spokesman told Fox News Digital. Bergman had supported Jordan throughout his run for speaker."

Following the second round of voting, the General was approached by colleagues and has had conversations about a possible Speaker run — it’s becoming clear Rep. Jordan’s path is narrowing by the hour," the spokesman said.

"We cannot go another day without a Speaker. He simply doesn’t have the votes — we need to have a frank discussion as a conference about a path forward. If as a conference we see he can’t get the necessary votes to become Speaker, General Bergman is prepared to step up."

Bergman is seeking to cast himself as a stable force to lead the House until the new term begins in 2025.

"The General isn’t seeking to climb the ladder, only steady it in a time of chaos — and would only seek to be Speaker for the remainder of the 118th Congress," his spokesman said. "Rep. Bergman served our Nation for 40 years in the United States Marine Corps — retiring as a Lt. General. He knows how to put others first to accomplish the task at hand."House GOP Conference Vice Chair Mike Johnson, R-La., is also fielding calls from colleagues for a run for speaker in case Jordan bows out, a source familiar with his plans told Fox News Digital. 

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, talks with Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and others as Republicans try to elect Jordan to be the new House speaker, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

House Republicans are meeting behind closed doors at 11 a.m. on Thursday ahead of a planned House-wide speaker vote, Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, told reporters this morning.

Jordan indicated that he intends to go through a third round of voting after falling 18 backers short of the 217 threshold needed to win the speaker’s gavel on Wednesday.

The first-round vote on Tuesday saw him win the support of 200 House Republicans.

The closed-door meeting comes amid escalating tensions within the House GOP, with several of Jordan’s critics stating that they had gotten credible threats because they did not vote for him for speaker. Jordan has condemned those threats.

Jordan will likely hear from at least several of the 22 Republicans who voted against him at the Thursday morning meeting, and he and his allies are expected to seek to change their minds – but whether he can convince enough to net a House-wide majority is still unclear.

Fox News' Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.

U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) casts her vote as the House of Representatives holds its second round of voting for a new Speaker of the House at the U.S. Capitol on October 18, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Several House Republicans who are not voting in favor of House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan's speaker bid said they have received death threats over their votes.

GOP Reps. Marianette Miller-Meeks of Iowa and Nick LaLota of New York said they have received death threats after not voting for Jordan's speakership bid.

Jordan's office has denounced the death threats, with spokesperson Russell Dye calling the actions "abhorrent" and having "no place in a civil discourse."

"No one should receive threats and it needs to stop," Dye said. "We have condemned these actions repeatedly."

"It is important that Republicans stop attacking each other and come together," he added.

Miller-Meeks released a statement on Wednesday night about the "credible death threats" she has received after voting for House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Rep. Kay Granger, R-Texas, for speaker over Jordan in the second round of voting.

The Iowa Republican said Jordan "was not able to secure enough votes" to take the gavel after supporting him in the first round and her "initial concerns about threatening tactics of Jim Jordan's supporters, including from members of Congress, increased despite assurances.

"She also said she voted for Granger "because she has demonstrated great leadership this year by bringing forth, and passing, fiscally responsible, single-subject appropriations bills and is a staunch conservative."

"However, since my vote in support of Chairwoman Granger, I have received credible death threats and a barrage of threatening calls," Miller-Meeks said. "The proper authorities have been notified and my office is cooperating fully."

Fox News' Houston Keene contributed to this report

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, enters of the offices of the Speaker of the House after Republicans failed for a second time to elect him to be the new House speaker, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

The House meets at 12pm ET today. If there is a vote for Speaker, it would begin around 1 pm et.

However, it is far from clear there will be a third ballot for Speaker today. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan bled support on the second ballot yesterday -- scoring only 199 votes yesterday after getting only 200 on Monday. He needs 217 to become speaker, and can afford few Republican defections.

Fox News is told he would lose even more votes today if a vote takes place.

House Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry is willing to give Jordan “as long as he needs” to round up the votes. Meanwhile, Jordan's team told Fox News Digital that "we're going to keep going."

But there has been a growing push for empowering McHenry as an acting Speaker in order to break the deadlock and get back to governing on issues, including the ongoing crisis in the Middle East and a looming government shut down next month.

Fox News' Chad Pergram and Liz Elkind contributed to this report.

Jordan to hold third round speaker vote Thursday after losing ground in back-to-back defeats

Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, intends to hold a third round vote for speaker on Thursday, a source familiar told Fox News Digital.

"We're going to keep going," Jordan's spokesman told Fox News Digital earlier when asked if there will be a third round.

All House Democrats and 22 Republicans voted against Jordan's bid for speaker on Wednesday. That's two more GOP lawmakers than who voted against Jordan on Tuesday.

But nevertheless, Jordan's allies have insisted that it was not an immediate sign of his campaign for speaker faltering.

"Don’t lose faith if [Jordan] loses a few votes on the second ballot. I’m committed to voting as many times as we must to get Jim elected as Speaker, as long as he is putting his name forward," Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., wrote on X. "If that means we vote all night, then buckle up 'cause we will vote all night!"

Read more from Fox News' Liz Elkind.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., explained his opposition to Rep. Jim Jordan's, R-Ohio, candidacy for speakership on Wednesday.

Bacon, appearing on Fox News, objected to how Jordan's block had opposed the candidacy of Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who had first been nominated to replace Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., as speaker earlier in October.

He referenced a handful of Jordan supporters to broke off to say that they would vote for no candidate other than Jordan, effectively ending Scalise's run.

"That's not how our rules work. I don't get involved with a process where you can break the rules and I can't break the rules. There had to be reciprocity here, and there was not," Bacon said. "Jim Jordan I think is a good man, I think he's great as chairman, but he was going to become speaker because his followers broke the rules."

Lawmakers in Congress are impatient for Republicans to end their in-fighting and elect a new Speaker of the House so they can vote on sending support to Israel this week.

Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-NY., and Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., appeared on Fox News with host Bret Baier to discuss a funding package they put together for Israel that would supply it with further ammunition to keep the vaunted Iron Dome in action. They recognized, however, that the appropriations package isn't going anywhere until a new speaker is elected.

Tenney, who voted for Jordan in both of the votes this week, admited that "it looks like Jordan is not going to get across the finish line."

Meanwhile, Gottheimer floated the possibility of granting temporary authority to Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., who is already serving to fill the role.

Rep. Dan Goldman, D-NY.,

Does House speaker have to be a member of Congress?

The House Republicans are fighting to choose a new chamber speaker and may have found the answer in House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.

Jordan has been wheeling and dealing for days shoring up support for his speakership bid, which is expected to see a floor vote on Tuesday.

While Jordan and every House speaker that has come before him have been members of the lower chamber, many Americans may not know that pretty much anybody can be speaker of the House.

Traditionally, the speaker is chosen from among the elected House members, but the Constitution does not explicitly say the top dog of the People’s House has to be a lawmaker. The potential speaker does, however, have to be nominated by a member of the House to be considered for the gavel.

In fact, amid the speaker chaos, former President Trump’s name has been floated as a potential replacement for now-ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

Fox News' Houston Keene contributed to this report.

Ousted ex-Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., does still have allies who would back him if he sought to get his old job back — but the vast majority of the GOP conference, including McCarthy himself, have moved on.

Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., declared as recently as Monday that he was “still OK — only Kevin.”

The pro-McCarthy sentiment of Gimenez’s was reposted on social media by Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., another moderate Republican who has not said if he will support Jordan on the House floor.

McCarthy himself, however, told fellow Republicans multiple times not to nominate him for speaker again.

"It isn’t viable and could draw out the process," a senior GOP aide told Fox News Digital last week of a potential comeback bid by McCarthy.

McCarthy was removed earlier this month in a majority House vote of eight Republicans and all present Democrats.

One of those eight, Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., said last week when asked if they could ever support McCarthy for speaker again, “Why would we?”

The House of Representatives is heading into yet another day without a speaker, and likely another day of votes amid Republican infighting and a failure to rally enough support — twice over — for Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan.

The House of Representatives is heading into yet another day without a speaker, and likely another day of votes amid Republican infighting and a failure to rally enough support — twice over — for Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., announced the next votes in the House would take place no earlier than 12:00 p.m. Thursday.

That’s when Jordan, R-Ohio, intends to hold a third round vote on the floor for speaker.

"We're going to keep going," Jordan's spokesman told Fox News Digital Wednesday.

Republicans nominated Jordan to be the next House speaker, but he needs support from 217 members.

All House Democrats and 22 Republicans voted against Jordan's bid for speaker on Wednesday. That's two more GOP lawmakers voting against him than on Tuesday. All Democrats voted for Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

But Jordan allies insist that is not a sign of a failed speaker campaign.

"Don’t lose faith if [Jordan] loses a few votes on the second ballot. I’m committed to voting as many times as we must to get Jim elected as Speaker, as long as he is putting his name forward," Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C., wrote on X. "If that means we vote all night, then buckle up cause we will vote all night!"

Fox News Liz Elkind and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

A person can be elected Speaker of the House with a simple majority, which typically comes out to 218 of the 435 total members voting in favor of a particular candidate.

A person can be elected Speaker of the House with a simple majority, which typically comes out to 218 of the 435 total members voting in favor of a particular candidate.

Republicans currently hold a razor thin majority in the House of Representatives, meaning a candidate for speaker can only lose four votes from their own party if everyone is present, assuming all Democrats vote for their party’s candidate, in order to avoid failing to reach the required majority. 

Should more members vote “present,” the majority threshold required would correspondingly drop. That is what happened when former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy won the speakership in January after numerous rounds of failing to gain a majority.

Re. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, has, so far, failed to reach a majority in the first two ballots since the ouster of McCarthy earlier this month.

Who is the current acting speaker of the house?

Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., has served as the temporary leader of the House of Representatives, or speaker pro tempore, since former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was removed from his post earlier this month.

House rules dictated that McCarthy, upon his election as speaker in January, provide a secret list of members to succeed him as speaker pro tempore should the office be vacated as it was with his removal. It was revealed following the vote to oust McCarthy that McHenry was at the top of the list.

As speaker pro tempore, McHenry has the powers of the House speaker to guide the chamber in its continued operation until a new speaker is elected.

McHenry is a former media consultant and political operative who was first elected to the House to represent North Carolina's 10th Congressional District in 2004. He was selected as the House Republican chief deputy whip in 2015 and served in the role until 2019. He was selected as chair of the House Financial Services Committee in January.