Seven House Republicans have entered the battle to become the next House Speaker following Rep. Jim Jordan's (R-OH) failure to garner enough votes to win after three rounds.
The GOP left lawmakers until Sunday at noon to add themselves as nominations, with over a half-dozen new options.
Seven Republicans Declare Candidacy for Speaker https://t.co/Cg0RP1vNLV via @BreitbartNews
— PatriotSons (@Patriot_Sons) October 22, 2023
"Republicans will reassemble Monday night for a candidate forum with a vote expected Tuesday," Breitbart News reported.
The new choices, according to the outlet, include Reps. Jack Bergman (MI), Byron Donalds (FL), Tom Emmer (MN), Kevin Hern (OK), Mike Johnson (LA), Austin Scott (GA) and Pete Sessions (TX).
Who are the new candidates for House speaker? https://t.co/DaNERMapbV
— NewsNation (@NewsNation) October 22, 2023
"Donalds, 44, is a member of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus. He is currently serving only his second term in Congress, having secured victory in his Naples-based district in 2020," News Nation reported.
"Hailing from New York originally, he received as many as 20 votes for the position of speaker on the House floor back in January, during the protracted battle that ultimately led to McCarthy’s emergence as speaker," it continued.
As Jordan wobbles, House GOP eyes potential next speaker candidates https://t.co/KNW4EQRlhV via @politico
— Route81Traveler (@Route81Traveler) October 19, 2023
“If as a conference we see he can’t get the necessary votes to become Speaker, General Bergman is prepared to step up,” Bergman spokesperson James Hogge said in a statement about the Michigan congressman.
“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,” he added.
No clear favorite exists at the moment. House Republicans meet Monday evening to discuss the new options as efforts to move ahead are set to continue.
The winner will need to find favor among the party's most conservative members to get the win, as even Jordan was unable to unite the party's spectrum of leaders.
The latest round now looks more like the party has time-traveled back to January, discussing the same issues with similar leaders to choose a leader to get started with its agenda. Only this time, it's October and just over a year until the next presidential election that the party desperately hopes to win while keeping power in the House and hoping to win back the majority in the Senate.
