Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida has made it clear that he wants fellow Republican Rep. Jim Jordan to be the next House speaker.
But the Fort Walton Beach Republican also argues that GOP lawmakers must make their choice in the open so the American people can have confidence in the process.
In an email to constituents on Friday, Gaetz, who engineered the toppling of previous House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, recapped last week’s effort to replace him. That ended with Jordan as the front-runner after his main competitor, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise dropping out, despite gathering 14 more votes than Jordan in the first balloting.
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Those activities culminated on Friday with Jordan being nominated, but with not enough clear support to claim the post. He is being challenged by Rep. Austin Scott of Georgia.
Jordan led Scott 124-81 after the initial vote. He tallied 25 more votes than he got in challenging Scalise, and collected 11 more votes than Scalise did in the first round. But Jordan still needs at least 55 more to claim the job.
Republicans will continue the process on Monday.
That process, Gaetz argued, must be as transparent as possible, no matter how long it takes.
Both of the Republicans’ votes for speaker so far have been behind closed doors.
“I believe it is time to elect Jim Jordan as Speaker of the House. He is a trusted conservative who can bring House Republicans together, and I am confident he would cultivate trust and keep the House of Representatives transparent and accountable to the American people,” Gaetz wrote to his constituents.
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“No matter how the Speaker’s election ultimately turns out, House Republicans should embrace transparency by moving the Speaker’s election out from behind closed doors onto the House floor,” he added.
“I think the process that occurred in January on the floor, where it took Kevin McCarthy 15 rounds of voting to become Speaker, was an important process for the American people to see,” he concluded.
“If it takes several rounds of voting again to elect our new Speaker, so be it — the American people deserve to see where their representatives stand on who should assume the Speaker’s chair.”
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