House Democrats have come out in staunch opposition to Republicans’ decision to nominate Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) as their next speaker, criticizing the Ohio Republican for his voting record and accusing him of being an “extremist extraordinaire.”
Democratic leaders decried Jordan’s nomination, arguing his elevation to the highest leadership position in the lower chamber would be a threat to democracy and paralyze lawmakers from making any bipartisan progress. Instead, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) has called on Republicans to pursue a bipartisan unity candidate that could win support from both parties.
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“We want to find a bipartisan path to reopening the House of Representatives so we can solve problems for the American people,” Jeffries said on Friday. “House Republicans have selected as their nominee to be the speaker of the People’s House the chairman of the Chaos Caucus, a defender in a dangerous way of dysfunction and an extremist extraordinaire.”
The comments come just hours after Jordan emerged as the party’s nominee after a 124-81 vote on Friday in which the Ohio Republican bested Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA) in a closed-door election. Lawmakers are expected to reconvene as early as Monday to vote on a House speaker.
Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar (R-CA) specifically pointed to Jordan’s previous comments denying the results of the 2020 election, which he said was partially responsible for the Jan. 6 Capitol riot that ensued in the months following.
“House Republicans are intent on doubling down and have chosen to nomination a vocal election denier in Jim Jordan, a man whose rhetoric and partisanship fomented the January 6th attack on this very building, on these very steps,” Aguilar, who served on the Jan. 6 Select Intelligence Committee in the last Congress, said. “Let me be clear, Jim Jordan is a threat to our democracy. He has been a consistent threat to our national security as well.”
The House is set to vote as early as Monday to elect the next House speaker. However, it’s not yet clear whether Jordan has shored up enough support within his own conference to secure the 217-vote threshold needed to clinch the speakership.
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Jordan is expected to use the weekend recess to continue speaking with members in an effort to convince any remaining holdouts to support his speakership bid.
Meanwhile, Democrats have urged Republicans to advance a bipartisan candidate that would advance the interests of both parties. However, several Republicans have expressed a hesitation to do so, indicating they partially blame Democrats for ousting former Speaker Kevin McCarthy in the first place.
