After nine days of chaos sparked by the sudden downfall of Kevin McCarthy, House Republicans have finally nominated a successor for the Speaker’s gavel: Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA), McCarthy’s longtime number two.
In a secret ballot vote held behind closed doors on Wednesday morning, 113 lawmakers chose Scalise, with Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) earning 99 votes, a source familiar with the proceeding told The Daily Beast.
For the bitterly divided House GOP, however, a resolution to their leadership crisis is still far off.
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To win the party’s nomination, Scalise simply needed a majority of votes. To survive the upcoming roll call vote in the full House of Representatives, he will need near-unanimous support from the GOP conference to secure the Speaker’s gavel and return the House to normal function.
A floor vote could take place as soon as Wednesday afternoon, though that appears unlikely.
Already, however, Scalise’s ability to marshal enough support is in serious doubt. His margin of victory on Wednesday was closer than expected, for one. Beyond that, allies of Jordan have expressed their willingness to vote for the Ohio Republican on the floor, even though Scalise is the nominee.
Exiting Wednesday’s private vote, both Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and Max Miller (R-OH) told reporters they planned to vote for Jordan on the floor. Notably, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who orchestrated McCarthy’s ouster, said that he was fully behind Scalise.
Jordan himself pointedly declined to endorse Scalise, according to Punchbowl News, saying he would do so only if the Louisiana Republican picked up the 217 votes needed to win the speakership.
Just a few anti-Scalise holdouts could now have the power to deny Scalise a victory, just as a squad of holdouts did to McCarthy back in January, when it took 15 votes and four days for the California Republican to win the speakership.
McCarthy’s ultimate path to victory last year was tortured despite his overwhelming victory in the preceding private conference nominating vote. Though Scalise won on Wednesday, there are a number of powers that, if determined enough, could put him through an ordeal far worse than what McCarthy endured.
The lawmakers who booted McCarthy from the speakership are nearly all members of the hard-right faction, which prefers Jordan. Former President Donald Trump, who holds tremendous sway in the party, has publicly endorsed Jordan. A pro-Jordan faction that refuses to accept defeat could easily spark a drawn-out floor battle.
The biggest wildcard may be the former speaker himself. Though he has said he would not seek the gavel again, he hasn’t ruled out the idea of returning to the office. Some McCarthy loyalists have continued to express their determination to get him back in power.
Privately, McCarthy’s team has pushed Jordan hard, as The Daily Beast and other outlets have reported. Though they have worked side by side for years, McCarthy and Scalise have long had bad blood stemming from their competition for the House GOP’s top leadership spot.
On Tuesday night, McCarthy told reporters he would endorse whoever the party nominated.
