The House of Representatives still has no president and will plunge further into chaos on Friday, October 20th. For lack of sufficient votes, Jim Jordan, the majority candidate, was again dismissed by his party. This is the second Republican candidate who fails to bring together this divided majority and completely paralyzes the American Congress.
Published on: October 20, 2023 – 11:20 p.m
1 minute
With our correspondent in Miami, David Thomson
After three rounds of voting and three consecutive failures, including the most recent on Friday October 20th, Jim Jordan He failed to secure the 217 votes needed to be elected to the House of Representatives seat.
25 majority elected officials oppose his candidacy; Therefore, it was computationally impossible for this ultra-Trumpist candidate to access the “Speaker” poster. With the Republican Party deeply divided between its hardline wing and more moderate elected officials, it is unable to get along.
After that third failure, this dagger-wielding majority met behind closed doors and voted to oust Jim Jordan. Donald Trump’s man in the House of Representatives is therefore no longer a candidate. This is the second time this scenario has occurred after Steve Scalise, the first unsuccessful Republican candidate.
Also read: Impeachment of Kevin McCarthy: the “Speaker,” a key figure in the American political landscape
At this point the blockage is complete. There is no solution in sight. All new candidates must register by Sunday, October 22nd. They will argue their case behind closed doors before the yet-to-be-named majority.
A vote is scheduled for Tuesday, October 24th, or perhaps Wednesday, October 25th. So this will be 20 days without a “speaker”; 20 days of paralysis of the American Congress, unable to pass legislation in the middle of an international crisis. Voting is therefore not possible military aid requested by President Joe Biden for Ukraine and for Israel.