House Republicans will decide who will lead them in the 120th Congress on Tuesday, picking between Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) for minority leader.
The race is a rematch for Scalise and Jordan, who ran for the top Republican spot when former Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted in 2023. While Scalise beat Jordan in a closed-door vote, both men ultimately fell short on the House floor for the speakership after allies of the lawmakers refused to support the opposing candidate.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has not publicly weighed in on the race, telling reporters Monday that he committed to not “tipping the scales” in the internal leadership elections.
A source familiar with Scalise’s leadership bid told the Washington Examiner that the majority whip has support from “all across different factions of the conference and throughout all the regions of the country.”
“We feel great about where we are and the momentum we’ve built,” the source said.
Scalise’s allies are arguing the majority leader is battle-tested and a strong fundraiser — an asset as Republicans try to chart a path back to the majority in 2028.
Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) told the Washington Examiner that the majority leader has a “better network” and pointed to his fundraising prowess.
“We’re certainly going to need all the resources that we can get in order to either dig in or regain the majority in 28,” Gimenez said. “I think he also has a better ability to unify the conference, and so it should be a spirited race.”
However, supporters of Jordan’s bid are arguing that after last week’s election results, a changing of the guard is needed in GOP leadership.
Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN), who told the Washington Examiner he plans to support Jordan, his former mentor, said the conference needs “new faces.”
“I think, you know, we had 50 colleagues get fired last Tuesday,” Stutzman said. “We need to show the American people, like, OK, you know what? We heard you. We’re getting a new head coach because our team lost bad, so I think that’s kind of how I see it.”
Rep. Mark Harris (R-NC), meanwhile, said that while he believes both men would make an excellent leader for the conference, his preference ahead of the elections was Jordan.
“[Jordan] was a big reason that I even made the decision to run for Congress,” Harris said. “I think there were a lot of people in the 2014-2016 era that looked at Jim Jordan and said, ‘I want to be like him.’ So I think he’s going to have a lot of support.”
Since his 2023 speakership loss, Jordan has spent significant time mending and building relationships with Republican candidates and incumbents across the political spectrum, giving him an edge in the minority leader race.
The victor of the leadership race only needs to reach a majority of the conference rather than a majority of the House required to elect a speaker, a significant difference from the pair’s 2023 matchup.
The conference will also decide the down-ballot Republican positions on Tuesday. Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) is facing Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger (R-TX) for the vote-counting position. For the top campaign Republican, Rep. Brian Jack (R-GA) is facing Rep. Rudy Yakym (R-IN).
The race for House Republican conference chair fielded three candidates: Reps. Greg Steube (R-FL) and Erin Houchin (R-IN) are challenging current chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-MI) for the No. 3 Republican spot.
McClain has 44 public endorsements and dozens more that have privately agreed to vote for her, according to her office. Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R-TX), a supporter of McClain, said in a statement that she believes the chairwoman “has the experience, team, and media machine to aggressively combat the Democrats on Day One.”
Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL), meanwhile, called McClain a “trusted friend since I first entered Congress.”
HOUSE REPUBLICANS RETURN TO CAPITOL HILL WITH LIMITED TIME LEFT IN POWER
“Her experienced leadership is needed now more than ever as House Republicans advance an aggressive messaging strategy and push back against the radical policies House Democrats will pursue,” Miller said.
However, if McClain wants to serve another term as conference chair, she will need to secure a simple majority as well, which could prove difficult on the first ballot in a three-way race.