House Republicans are heading into a showdown over who will lead them out of the minority after last week’s election defeat, with Jim Jordan and Steve Scalise battling Tuesday to take over a battered conference.
The race for minority leader opened after Speaker Mike Johnson announced he would step aside as the party’s leader in the next Congress. Republicans now face a choice between Scalise, a longtime member of their leadership team, and Jordan, the Judiciary Committee chairman known for taking the fight to Democrats.
Whoever wins will inherit the task of rebuilding the GOP’s House operation while Democrats take control of the chamber for President Donald Trump’s final two years in office.
The contest also revives a rivalry from the Republican scramble to replace ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023. Both Scalise and Jordan pursued the gavel that year before Johnson ultimately secured it.
Scalise, R-La., enters the race with more than a decade of leadership experience. First elected to the House in 2008, he has served as majority leader since 2023.
He survived a shooting at a congressional baseball practice in 2017 that left him critically wounded. Scalise later underwent treatment for multiple myeloma, a blood cancer, and has said the disease is in remission.
Jordan, R-Ohio, built his national profile through high-profile committee battles and his staunch defense of Trump. He has served as the top Republican on both the Oversight and Judiciary committees.
A two-time NCAA wrestling champion, Jordan was first elected to the House in 2006 and took office in January 2007. His 2023 campaign for speaker ended after he failed to secure enough support on the House floor.
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Tuesday’s Republican gathering begins with a candidate forum and organizing conference at 9 a.m., followed by leadership elections scheduled from 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Voting takes place behind closed doors by secret ballot, with candidates needing majority support to win. Republicans elected to serve in the incoming Congress will make the selections; retiring lawmakers and those defeated last week will not participate.
Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain, R-Mich., is expected to announce ballot results on X.
The fight for minority leader tops a broader round of contested elections across the House GOP’s leadership ranks.
Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., faces Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, for minority whip, which will become the conference’s No. 2 position.
McClain is seeking another term as conference chairwoman against Reps. Erin Houchin of Indiana and Greg Steube of Florida. The position will rank third among House Republicans in the minority.
Reps. Brian Jack of Georgia and Rudy Yakym of Indiana are competing to chair the National Republican Congressional Committee, the party’s House campaign arm.
Across the aisle, House Democrats are scheduled to begin their leadership elections Nov. 18, with voting set for Nov. 18 and 19. Their top three lawmakers are currently running unopposed.
Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is expected to secure his caucus’s nomination for speaker. Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., is seeking the majority leader position, while Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., is running for majority whip.
Jeffries would become the first Black speaker if elected by the full House when the new Congress convenes Jan. 3, 2027.
That floor vote is separate from the Democratic caucus election. Winning the speakership requires a majority of votes cast for a named candidate, meaning 218 votes if all 435 members vote for someone.
Senate Republicans also face leadership decisions Tuesday, although several GOP senators have pushed to postpone their elections until lawmakers have more time to examine the party’s midterm losses.
It remained unclear whether that effort would delay the voting.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., heads the current team alongside Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., and Republican Conference Chairman Tom Cotton, R-Ark. No major changes to that lineup were expected heading into the elections.
Senate Democrats are expected to hold their leadership elections in early December, CBS News reported.
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