Related video: Moment Jim Jordan loses first round of House speaker vote
Rep Jim Jordan lost further support in the second vote on the floor of the House on his bid for speaker.
Yesterday, Mr Jordan lost the first vote on the floor of the House after 20 members of his own party chose not to back him. Going into the second ballot on Wednesday, Mr Jordan appeared to be haemorrhaging further support. He can only afford to lose four votes.
Critics of Mr Jordan are pushing to torpedo his bid for the gavel once and for all.
Nebraska GOP Rep Don Bacon told KETV on Wednesday morning: “It is our hope that Jim, Mr Jordan, will realize he cannot win. And we need to move on and select a speaker. We need a speaker ASAP.”
Mr Bacon voted for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy during the first ballot on Tuesday.
This comes more than two weeks since Rep Matt Gaetz filed a motion to vacate, which led to seven other Republicans and every Democratic representative present to depose Mr McCarthy.
Key Points
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Four Republicans who voted for Mr Jordan on Tuesday didn’t back him today.
Two Republicans who voted against him yesterday flipped to back him.
One member who was absent on Tuesday voted for Mr Jordan today.
After getting 200 votes on Tuesday, Mr Jordan appears to receive 199 today.
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 18:02
Following a fourth fresh defection from Mr Jordan, the anti-Jordan GOP coalition reached 21 – a worse result than on Tuesday.
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:51
Rep Doug LaMalfa voted for Mr Jordan on Wednesday after previously voting for Mr McCarthy.
But two Jordan-backers have flipped so far.
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:38
Jordan and Jeffries cheered when voting for themselves
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:36
Rep Mike Kelly, who voted for Mr Scalise yesterday, backed ex-Speaker John Boehner on Wednesday.
17 Republicans have now voted against Mr Jordan.
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:34
Democrats chant after nominating speech for Jeffries
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:21
If no one changes their vote, Rep Jim Jordan has lost the second vote on his speaker’s bid after at least five Republicans voted against him.
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:20
Second vote is underway, Jordan is losing support
The second vote is underway and Mr Jordan is losing support.
Rep Verb Buchanan, who backed Mr Jordan on Tuesday, voted for Rep Byron Donalds on Wednesday.
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:17
‘The Speaker of the House must be a legislator,’ Aguilar say as he blasts Jordan
As he nominated Mr Jeffries, Mr Aguilar said, “One thing was very clear yesterday. The vote total – 212 to 200. The people’s house has spoken and Leader Jeffries has the support to be the Speaker that this country needs”.
“212 to 200 – No amount of election denying is going to take away from those vote totals,” he said.
“We shouldn’t be surprised at the vote count. I noted yesterday the legislative acumen of the gentleman from Ohio Would it surprise anyone that in addition to not passing a single piece of legislation,” Mr Aguilar added. “He’s never put a piece of legislation that has made it to a committee.”
“The Speaker of the House must be a legislator and the gentleman from Ohio falls short in that regard. He supports an extreme agenda and is hell-bent on banning abortion nationwide,” Mr Aguilar said, adding that Mr Jordan was aiming at “gutting Medicare, gutting Social Security and giving cover to January 6 attackers”.
“Those aren’t the values that we share,” he added.
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:14
Aguilar mentions possibility of compromise as he nominates Jeffries
Rep Pete Aguilar, the chair of the Democratic Caucus, said in his speech nominating Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, “I promised to make these speeches shorter if we get closer to a compromise, but I’m not certain that that’s going to happen at this moment”.
“While the Republican candidate for speaker is making late-night backroom deals to secure the gavel, Leader Jeffries has once again extended the hand of bipartisanship for a path forward,” he added.
Gustaf Kilander18 October 2023 17:09