WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio won the race Tuesday to serve as House Republican leader as the party prepares for its new role in the minority and a flurry of Democratic investigations aimed at its standard-bearer in the White House.
Jordan, who serves as chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, defeated Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana in a secret-ballot election of Republicans who will serve in the next Congress. The vote was 106-73.
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Jordan, 62, is a co-founder of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus and served as its first chairman. His candidacy appealed to those looking for new leadership in the wake of last week’s election debacle and to those who like his hard-hitting political style.
“The way that Jim fights says a lot about where this conference is,” said Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., who nominated Jordan to serve as minority leader.
Jordan will inherit a historically small House Republican conference that is only beginning to grapple with its loss of power as President Donald Trump serves out his final two years in office. Leading the party back to the House majority in 2028 is sure to be a stiff climb, given the scope of Democratic victories in the midterms.
In brief remarks to reporters after his win, Jordan said Republicans would focus on fighting for American families over the next two years.
“When Democrats offer more government, we'll offer more freedom,” Jordan said. “We will bring that fight in committee, on the floor and on the stump every single day.”
Jordan and Scalise came to Congress together two decades ago. They both ran to serve as House speaker after Kevin McCarthy was ousted from the job in 2023. Neither was able to rally the support necessary to secure the position, which eventually went to Mike Johnson, who is stepping aside from the leadership in the new Congress.
Scalise, 61, has held key GOP leadership positions going back to 2014, serving as party whip and then as majority leader. In 2017, he was critically wounded when a gunman opened fire at a baseball practice where several Republican lawmakers and staffers were preparing for an annual charity baseball game against Democrats. In 2023, he was stricken with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that was successfully treated.
“Overcoming adversity is nothing new to me,” Scalise said in his pitch to colleagues.
He also emphasized his fundraising prowess, noting he raised $67.9 million for this year's midterms, with about a third of that going directly to individual House campaigns and the National Republican Congressional Committee.
But the majority of Republicans opted for Jordan, who emphasized his experience battling with Democrats in committee rooms. Jordan served as the top Republican on the House oversight panel before he became the lead Republican on the committee six years ago. That experience proved popular with his colleagues.
“Instead of focusing on the people, it seems that the entire objective for Democrats is going to be targeted investigations,” said Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla. “And Jim Jordan knows about weaponization.”
Scalise's backers liked his experience getting legislation over the finish line. And Scalise edged Jordan in a similar secret-ballot vote three years ago in the race to succeed McCarthy, though neither would end up getting the job.
But as a result of the election last week, the House Republican conference is smaller, with a disproportionate number of moderates and swing-district lawmakers retiring or voted out. Many of those returning were hungry for a new leader.
“We're a significantly more conservative conference than we were,” Mast said.
Democrats argued that Jordan's selection indicated that Republicans took the wrong lesson from the election loss.
"I would think that they would want somebody that was going to moderate towards what the voters want. They lost so many Republican voters," said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash. “Obviously that's not the case.”
“The House Republican caucus clearly chose the more extreme candidate,” said Rep. Ted Lieu of California and vice chair of the House Democratic caucus. “Hopefully, he'll work with Democrats. We'll see what happens.”
Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota was elected as the Republican whip, the No. 2 position in the leadership hierarchy. He beat out Rep. August Pfluger of Texas for the job. Rep. Lisa McClain of Michigan won reelection to serve as conference chair, the No. 3 position.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York is expected to become the next House speaker, the first African American to hold the job, and Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts is expected to become the next majority leader. She would be the first woman to hold that position.
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Associated Press writer Joey Cappelletti contributed to this report.
