After secret vote, Republicans force Jim Jordan to withdraw as candidate for president of the federal lower house

The Republican Jim Jordan failed this Friday for the third time in his attempt to lead the United States House of Representativesand after holding a private meeting and a secret vote, his colleagues forced him to withdraw as the candidate to occupy the position.

Jordan indicated that Congress needed to “get to work for the American people,” but he lost ground as opposition to his House speaker bid grew. Republican members of the Lower House warned the strong ally of former President Donald Trump that multiple threats or promises would not serve to obtain majority support.

More than two dozen Republicans revolted after learning of Jordan’s candidacy for office, and were against the tactics used to try to obtain votes in favor.

The conservatives have the majority in that chamber, with 221 seats, and Jordan needed 214 votes today to win the position of “speaker”, as it is known in English, but before the scrutiny ended, 17 legislators from his bench had voted for candidates who had not even applied. In total, 25 Republican Party members voted against Jordan.

“We need a speaker as soon as possible so we can get to work for the American people,” Jordan had stated in a press conference this morning before the vote.

On Tuesday, the conservative got 200 votes and a day later 199, after the rejection of twenty Republicans opposed to a representative of the most radical wing of the party, an ally of the former President Donald Trump (2017-2021), achieve leadership.

In those two days he needed the support of 217 because 432 legislators were present in the chamber, compared to 427 today.

The Lower House has been without a president for more than two weeks, after the previous one, also conservative Kevin McCarthy, was dismissed following a motion against him presented by the radical Matt Gaetz, from his own party, who does support Jordan.

The lack of consensus around Jordan caused this Thursday to initially leak the possibility of giving more powers to the current interim president, Patrick McHenry, appointed with McCarthy, so that that legislative assembly can continue to function fully and support new resolutions and bills.

With this proposal Jordan temporarily withdrew his candidacy, until January, to continue gathering support until then. But after a heated internal party meeting, the party decided to go ahead and try a third time, without waiting.

On the Democratic side, the minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, aspires to the position, who in the two previous votes achieved the full support of his people, with 212 votes in his favor.

The Lower House remains blocked at a time when the budgets for the current fiscal year must still be approved and when the US president, Joe Biden, has just asked Congress to approve an allocation of more than $100,000 million that includes an aid of $14,300 million for Israel and a new package for Ukraine for $61,400.

Last January, it took McCarthy 15 attempts to take over the leadership, again due to the internal boycott, and his short mandate was weakened by pressure from the most radical wing, which reproached him for inefficient management and concessions to the Democrats.

Before the vote, Jeffries asked his colleagues this Friday “traditional Republicans, good men and women from the other side of the aisle, join with Democrats to find a bipartisan path,” because Jordan, in his opinion, is a “clear danger” to the United States.

For Sarafina Chitika, spokesperson for the Democratic National Committee, Jordan “refuses to accept his failed candidacy just as he refuses to accept the results of the 2020 (presidential) election, as GOP chaos continues to rage in the House of the People at the expense of much-needed aid.” urgently for Israel, Gaza and Ukraine.”