Trump ally Jim Jordan falls short in US house speaker vote again

Lawmakers in the US House of Representatives have again rejected hardline conservative Jim Jordan's bid to become speaker. This is the second time the pro-Trump leader has fallen short of the required votes. The leadership vacuum continues to paralyse Washington. There was no clear resolution in sight as the crisis entered its 15th day.

The lower chamber of US Congress has been in this state since the ouster of Republican speaker Kevin McCarthy by his own party colleagues earlier this month.

In order to be elected as speaker of the House, Jordan can only afford to lose four Republican votes. But in the second ballot, 22 of his colleagues rejected his candidacy, two more than a day earlier.

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The stakes are high amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, a renewed push for Ukraine aid and the looming government shutdown.

However, Jordan's centrist colleagues within the Republican Party are wary of his hard-right politics. They have voiced irritation over a concerted effort to whip extra votes for the 59-year-old former wrestling champion.

"Each day that passes without a speaker of the House is a national security risk," said Jordan supporter and California Republican David Valadao.

"I voted for the Republican Conference's nominee for speaker because we must get back to work, and we cannot do that until we have a speaker."

No immediate plan for a third vote

Jordan's second defeat has brought the angst around the speaker's race and Republican Party disarray into focus. There is no immediate plan for a third vote.

Jordan is the chairman of the powerful Judiciary Committee. If a third round of votes is held, he will be expected to show major progress in terms of number of votes. But as things stand today, those opposing him are dug in.

Also Read | Who is Jim Jordan? Know about his early life & career

His Republican opponents met after voting against him for the first time Tuesday and nearly all reaffirmed their objections, with some predicting Jordan would only haemorrhage more support.

It is viewed that Jordan, the lawmaker from Ohio, does not have the rank-and-file goodwill that McCarthy spent years cultivating. It is unlikely that they would indulge him in the 15 rounds of voting that it took to get his predecessor elected.

There is a worry that there is no alternative to Jordan and there will be further deadlock if he goes backwards.

There is momentum behind a push to formally appoint caretaker speaker Patrick McHenry for a limited period of perhaps a few months -- expanding his purely ceremonial powers so that he can bring legislation to the floor.

(With inputs from agencies)

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