House Republicans elect Jim Jordan as next minority leader

House Republicans elected Jim Jordan as their next leader Tuesday, turning to the Ohio conservative and close ally of President Donald Trump after losing more than 40 seats in last week’s midterm elections.

Jordan defeated current Majority Leader Steve Scalise in a secret ballot, 106 to 73, according to CBS News, which cited people familiar with the tally. He will lead House Republicans in the next Congress, when Democrats are set to control both chambers for the final two years of Trump’s presidency.

The vote marks a change at the top of a party preparing to move into the minority. House Speaker Mike Johnson said last week that he would step aside from leadership. CBS News reported that Johnson has not committed to a long-term future in Congress.

Jordan, who has chaired the House Judiciary Committee since 2023, helped found the conservative House Freedom Caucus. In a letter announcing his bid, he called himself “battle-tested” and argued that Republicans needed a clearer approach to the next Congress.

“For too long, we have operated without a clear plan to survive the hour or the day in front of us,” Jordan wrote. “That will not cut it against an emboldened and energetic Democratic majority.”

Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, has held House leadership posts since 2014. He served as both majority and minority whip before becoming majority leader in 2023. In his own letter to Republican colleagues, he acknowledged the party’s losses while emphasizing his experience facing difficult circumstances.

“This is no doubt a challenging time for our conference, but overcoming adversity is nothing new to me,” Scalise wrote.

Scalise was critically injured in a shooting at a congressional baseball practice in 2017. He announced a diagnosis of multiple myeloma in 2023 and said several months later that he was in remission after treatment, according to CBS News.

Tuesday’s contest brought Jordan and Scalise back into a leadership fight that echoed the turmoil following Kevin McCarthy’s removal as speaker in 2023. Both sought the speakership then, but neither was able to unite House Republicans. Johnson, at the time a lesser-known conservative without leadership experience, ultimately won the conference’s unanimous backing for the post.

The House vote comes amid a broader round of leadership elections on Capitol Hill. House Democrats are expected to hold theirs later this month. Despite calls to Democratic offices for new leadership, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries appears to face no serious challenge, Talking Points Memo reported. The outlet also reported that some Senate Republicans want to delay their leadership elections to discuss the party’s losses.

Separately, the House is preparing for a possible vote as soon as Wednesday on impeaching Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, according to Talking Points Memo. Jeffries said over the weekend that he was a “hard yes” on the measure.