Rep. Jim Jordan indicated Friday that he planned to keep pushing to become the next speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, even as he continues to face opposition from his fellow Republicans.
“There’s been multiple rounds of votes for speaker before,” the Ohio congressman said during a news conference, referring to how former Speaker Kevin McCarthy needed 15 ballots to secure the job in January.
Jordan appears to be aiming for a third round of voting on his candidacy around 10 a.m. Eastern Friday.
“Our plan this weekend is to get a speaker elected to the House of Representatives as soon as possible so we can help the American people,” he also said during his news conference.
Jordan — an ally of former President Donald Trump and co-founder of the hardline House Freedom Caucus — had 22 GOP lawmakers vote against him in a second ballot on Wednesday. On Tuesday, 20 fellow Republicans backed other candidates in an initial round of voting.
Jordan can only afford to have four GOP lawmakers vote against him, as no Democrats have been supporting him. He needs a simple majority to become speaker, or 217 votes, and the House has 221 Republicans and 212 Democrats.
Analysts have been warning that the process of picking a new speaker is preventing the Republican-run House from addressing crucial matters, such as supporting Israel and passing a budget to avoid a government shutdown next month that could rattle markets SPX.
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With the House looking rudderless, the chamber’s temporary speaker, GOP Rep. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, is facing calls to take on the job more permanently. But a measure that would have McHenry serve in the post until January stalled on Thursday afternoon due to objections from a number of Republicans.