The fight for Speaker of the House continues as California Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R) looks to secure the position.
However, Republicans are facing infighting as names like Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan (R) and Byron Donalds (R) have received support for the position.
Texas Rep. Chip Roy (R) is one of numerous Republicans that have launched an opposition against McCarthy attaining the Speaker of the House position. So far, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz (R) has nominated Jordan, and Jordan has subsequently received 15 votes in support.
Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R) is another Florida Republican that supports Rep. Jordan in the Speaker role.
Similarly, Rep. Roy has voted for Rep. Donalds, and in an interview with Fox News, Roy explained why he’s choosing to not support McCarthy at this time.
When asked why he was leading the charge against McCarthy, Roy clarified that he’s not leading the charge against McCarthy but is instead “leading the charge for my constituents.”
Roy went on to explain that his priority is to serve the American people and that he was not sent to Congress “for second place.” He explained that his vote was for Donalds because Donalds is “not from the swamp,” and Roy is looking for McCarthy to affirm that another omnibus bill will not make it to the House floor.
“Is anybody listening to this actually happy with what Congress is doing?” Roy questioned, further asking why lawmakers would choose to “embrace the status quo.”
Ultimately, Roy asserted that his goal is “to fight for the American people no matter who the Speaker of the House is,” but this has put him at odds with colleagues like Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R) who supports McCarthy for the role.
It should be noted that Jordan voted in favor of McCarthy.
The members of Congress failed to elect a new Speaker of the House on the first ballot with the highest votes going to New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D) and McCarthy.
This is the first time that Congress has not been able to elect a Speaker since 1923.
The vote will now go to a fourth vote.
This story is developing...
