Jim Jordan loses first ballot in speaker race

WASHINGTON — Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) was struck down in the first ballot in his bid for Speaker of the House Tuesday.

The vote was split between Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Jordan, but several members had been expected to vote for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and others.

As it stands, Jordan has fewer members supporting him than McCarthy did when he was removed.

He needs to try to shore up more support if he will win support in future ballots.

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There were many strong-arm tactics used to get Jordan to the top spot, including having Fox host Sean Hannity pressure moderates into electing Jordan simply to have someone in the seat to pass funding for Ukraine and Israel.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) made a speech nominating Jordan, heralding his success "on the wrestling mat," which drew multiple protests from Democrats in the chamber. Jordan was accused by students and colleagues of knowing about a sexual abuse scandal in which the team doctor was molesting the wrestlers. Jordan continues to deny it.

When Rep. Jeffries was nominated, the speech highlighted Jordan's refusal to support any and all aid to those seeking disaster relief. Democrats chanted "he said no," when it was mentioned that Jordan refused to support funding for Superstorm Sandy, wildfires in California and floods in the south.

If four Republicans vote against Jordan and the Democrats are united in opposition, he loses.