House Republicans have elected Jim Jordan as their next leader, putting a combative Trump ally at the head of the party as it prepares for life in opposition after last week’s midterm election defeat.
A 106-73 secret ballot
Jordan, 62, the Ohio Republican and chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, defeated outgoing Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana by 106 votes to 73 in a closed-door secret ballot on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press and two lawmakers in the room. Speaker Mike Johnson opted not to stand for the leadership position.
Jordan will become minority leader in the 120th Congress when Democrats take control of the House in January, after winning sizable majorities in both chambers last Tuesday. “Over the next two years, House Republicans will fight for American families,” Jordan said after the vote. He added: “Actually, I see my role as trying to regain the majority.”
A founder of the Freedom Caucus
First elected in 2006 to represent a deeply conservative rural district in northern Ohio, Jordan was a founder of the House Freedom Caucus. As Judiciary Committee chairman he led a two-year impeachment probe into former President Joe Biden, which ultimately did not lead to impeachment proceedings, and investigated former Special Counsel Jack Smith and Democratic officials who challenged President Trump.
His election came on the same day the House blocked an effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, handing President Donald Trump a victory days after the midterm defeat.
What comes next
Jordan takes charge of a diminished Republican conference, with the party holding only a narrow House majority until January. His task will be to defend the president’s agenda during his final two years in office from the minority benches, a role that will test his reputation as one of the party’s most pugnacious figures. Johnson’s decision not to stand cleared the way for the Jordan-Scalise contest, a rivalry the two men had fought before, and Jordan won the secret ballot of Republicans who will serve in the next Congress, according to the Associated Press.
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