House speaker live updates: Who are the 7 candidates running after two dropped out?
WASHINGTON – The House is in its 21st day without a speaker – officially entering its third week without a formal leader as chaos and uncertainty continues to roil the lower chamber.
House Republicans will huddle behind closed-doors, a familiar scene as they have failed to unite and elect a new speaker in three weeks, to vote on another speaker nominee to bring to the House floor.
All it takes for a candidate to win the GOP nomination is a simple majority of the conference but the real question for any speaker nominee is whether they can get the near-unanimous support they need from House Republicans to be elected speaker.
So far, the last two speaker nominees, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La. and House Judiciary Committee chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, dropped out of the race due to the splinters that run through the House Republican conference.
House Republicans will decide on a third nominee in an internal secret ballot vote at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday. A speaker election could happen the same day as soon as a candidate is nominated.
Follow along for live updates from USA TODAY on the speaker fight.
Who are the candidates for speaker?
The field of GOP lawmakers gunning for the top job is a crowded one – there are eight candidates vying for the nomination. They are:
- Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn.
- Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla.
- Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla.
- Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La.
- Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga.
- Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Mich.
- Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas
- there were seven: Gary Palmer drops out of House speaker race
Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Ala., dropped out of the speaker's race before the nomination vote began behind closed-doors.
"Congress and the American people needed a Republican speaker three weeks ago," Palmer said in a statement. "If withdrawing my name can help expedite that process even a little, then I will gladly step aside."− Ken Tran
Scalise: 'It's about unifying our conference'
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., who was the conference's first nominee but withdrew due to a lack of support, told reporters all the candidates have strong visions to lead Republicans.
"Everybody's talking about the same things. It's about unifying our conference," Scalise said, noting that the immediate problem the House must address is aid to Israel.
Trump won't endorse Emmer (or anyone else) for House speaker
Donald Trump says he is staying out of this race for House Speaker, but he has made it clear he's not crazy about one of the leading candidates: Tom Emmer.
The former president and current 2024 candidate pointedly refused to endorse Emmer even as he confirmed that the House Majority Whip had called him over the weekend about the speaker's job.
“Well, I think he’s my biggest fan now because he called me yesterday and he told me, ‘I’m your biggest fan' - so I don’t know about that," Trump told reporters in New Hampshire on Monday as he filed to run in the state's primary.
Trump, who backed Jim Jordan for speaker the last time around, said of the current Speaker's race: "We're looking at a lot of people ... I’m sort of trying to stay out of that as much as possible."
Trump clashed with Emmer over strategy for the 2022 congressional elections. The rift has apparently not healed, and Trump associates are all over social media and talk radio opposing Emmer as well.
−David Jackson
Dan Meuser drops out of House speaker race
Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., dropped out of the speaker's race at the House GOP candidate forum Monday evening.
Meuser gave opening remarks in the forum but then announced he would exit the race. The Pennsylvania Republican received a standing ovation after he made his announcement according to Reps. Thomas Massie R-Ky. and Troy Nehls, R-Texas.− Ken Tran
Third times the charm? GOP lawmakers feeling optimistic
Leaving the candidate forum Monday evening where the eight prospective speakers made their pitch to House Republicans, GOP lawmakers felt optimistic about electing a speaker by the end of the week.
Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., gave the House “slightly better than 50/50” odds, a relatively sanguine prediction given the gridlock that has prevented House Republicans from electing a new speaker for three weeks now.
Other lawmakers gave even better odds – they think they can get this done tonight.
“I think we’re gonna solve this tomorrow night,” Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., said Monday. “People know we gotta come together and get this done.”
− Ken Tran
What is the Republican conference nomination process?
Expect the nomination vote to take a while.
House Republicans are expected to hold multiple rounds of voting to decide on a nominee. To win the nomination, a candidate has to win a simple majority of the conference.
If no one wins, the candidate in last place is removed from future ballots and another round of voting is held. The cycle repeats until a candidate wins a majority. With eight candidates, the nomination process could take a long time.
Some House Republicans pass on unity pledge to support nominee
In a bid to avoid another failed speaker election, Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., has been circulating a unity pledge in the House GOP conference asking lawmakers to sign the pledge promising to support the conference’s nominee regardless of who they turn out to be.
But ahead of an internal nomination vote, some GOP lawmakers aren’t too keen on pledging their vote until they know who the nominee is.
“I think we need to focus on making sure somebody’s gonna lead this party in the right direction,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, a member of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus told reporters Monday, declining to commit to signing Flood’s pledge.
– Ken Tran
How soon could a speaker election be held?
A speaker election could happen as soon as House Republicans select a nominee but it’s unclear if GOP lawmakers would want to do that.
Depending on the nomination process and how much support the nominee earns, the conference could give time for the speaker-designee to shore up support before a vote on the floor.
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