House not planning vote for speaker this afternoon after GOP nominates Scalise

The House will not hold a speaker Wednesday evening after the GOP selected a nominee, Fox News has learned.

The House will reconvene Thursday around noon.

House Republicans selected Rep. Steve Scalise as the nominee for speaker earlier Wednesday at a caucus conference, but it was not clear that he had the votes to win the speakership on the floor.

Scalise received 113 votes from his fellow Republican members while opponent Rep. Jim Jordan won 99. Following the secret vote, some members said Wednesday that they had concerns with Scalise, and indicated they would vote for Jordan on the floor.

The House gaveled in briefly around 3 p.m., but immediately went into recess.

Fox is told that the Republican caucus will hold a conference meeting on Thursday.

Following the Wednesday conference, Jordan threw his support behind Scalise and urged his colleagues to unite around the nominee. Jordan is also expected to give the nominating speech on the House floor when the vote occurs, sources told Fox News.

Fox News' Chad Pergram contributed reporting

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., emerged from the office where House GOP leaders are huddled on Wednesday evening telling reporters she would support Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., for speaker.

Scalise was elected as his party’s candidate for speaker earlier in the day during a closed door vote but has since had some trouble getting enough support in the GOP conference to bring a full House vote to the floor.

Luna, who was leaning toward Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan for speaker, would not say immediately after the meeting whether she’d fall in line behind Scalise.

“After talking to Representative Scalise, I feel very confident that he's going to allow me to aggressively pursue justice for this country and this nation," Luna said. "And so I'll be supporting him on the floor.”

“But again, that is because he will be aggressively allowing me to pursue and do my job,” she said.

Without giving details, Luna said she got assurances from Scalise that she would be able to take on “the weaponization of Jack Smith” and the Biden impeachment inquiry in her capacity as a member of the Oversight Committee.

Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., told reporters that he is backing his longtime No. 2 for his old job.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., won a closed-door conference vote earlier in the day to become the Republican majority’s next candidate for speaker.

But any confidence in a quick House vote to seal the deal dissipated quickly as several GOP lawmakers publicly announced they would not support him in a chamber-wide vote.

Asked if he has any advice for Scalise, McCarthy said: “Look, Steve's going to have to talk to them all, see what the concerns are.”

“But I'm supporting Steve,” he added.

The two House Republican leaders have had a longstanding rivalry which at times has boiled into public jabs this year, particularly when hardline Republicans held up the House floor over anger at McCarthy for the bipartisan debt limit deal.

Rep. Jim Jordan is expected to give a nominating speech for GOP speaker nominee Steve Scalise, whenever a vote is held on the House floor, Fox News is told.

Republicans voted on Wednesday afternoon to nominate Scalise as their nominee for the speaker's gavel. Scalise won 113 votes, Jordan won 99.

The full chamber had been expected to vote as early as 3 p.m. for a new speaker, but the House went into recess on Wednesday afternoon and a vote is not currently planned.

A source with direct knowledge told Fox that Jordan will vote for Scalise and is encouraging his colleagues to do so. Now, Fox is told he will also give a nominating speech.

Someone on the Democratic side will likely do the same for Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries -- who is expected to be the Democrats' choice for speaker. Before the clerk calls the roll for a floor vote, members can nominate a candidate on the floor and give remarks.

Fox News' Kelly Phares, Tyler Olson and Liz Elkind contributed to this report.

The House has come into session, but then recesses subject to the call of the chair, leaving it unclear if a speaker vote could occur today in the chamber.

The chamber had been expected to vote as early as 3 p.m. for a new speaker, after Republican voted behind closed doors to nominate Steve Scalise as their nominee to pick up the gavel.

Scalise won 113 votes, Jordan won 99 in a secret ballot. Timing of the vote is up to Scalise, but some lawmakers suggested there was going to be a vote at 3 p.m. ET.

That immediately brought objections from Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, who said he would not vote for Scalise and called the timing of the vote "unacceptable & purposeful."

Sources later told Fox News Digital that the House would go into recess and a vote is not currently planned for Wednesday.

Meanwhile, a source with direct knowledge told Fox that Jordan will vote for Scalise and is encouraging his colleagues to do so.

Fox News' Chad Pergram and Liz Elkind contributed to this report.

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan plans to vote for Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., on the floor and is encouraging his colleagues to do the same, a source with direct knowledge tells Fox News Digital.

Republicans chose Scalise as their candidate over Jordan earlier today. The vote was by secret ballot. Scalise won 113 votes, Jordan won 99.

A vote had been expected as early as Wednesday afternoon, but sources told Fox that the House will recess at 3pm and a vote is not currently planned for today. Some Republicans have said they will not vote for Scalise, including Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas.

Earlier Wednesday, a Jordan spokesperson told Fox that Jordan was going to meet with Scalise, and was not whipping votes.

“We’re headed to the Capitol to meet with Scalise and we’re not whipping votes," Jordan spokesperson Russell Dye told Fox News Digital.

The vote comes after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was ousted in a vote by eight members of his own party and all House Democrats last week. That moment marked the first time in history the U.S. House of Representatives voted to remove its own leader.

Fox News' Liz Elkind and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, says he will not vote for Steve Scalise as House Speaker and took aim at what he called an "unacceptable & purposeful" vote timing.

"I will not be voting for @SteveScalise on the floor this afternoon. The House GOP should NOT have called a vote at 300pm after finishing the vote at 130pm in Conference."

"That is unacceptable & purposeful," he said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla. had told Fox News that he expects a floor vote for speaker as soon as 3 p.m. today. Hern also announced his running to succeed Scalise as majority leader.

However, the timing of the vote is still up to Scalise, and will likely be dependent on if he has the votes to secure the speaker's gavel.

Republicans chose Scalise as their candidate over House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan earlier this afternoon. The vote was by secret ballot.

Scalise won 113 votes, Jordan won 99

House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan will soon meet with Rep. Steve Scalise after Scalise secured the Republican nomination to be the next speaker of the House -- and will not be whipping votes, a spokesperson said.

“We’re headed to the Capitol to meet with Scalise and we’re not whipping votes," Jordan spokesperson Russell Dye told Fox News Digital.

Republicans chose Scalise as their candidate over Jordan. The vote was by secret ballot. Scalise won 113 votes, Jordan won 99.

A vote is expected House-wide as early as 3pm this afternoon.

Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla. told Fox News that he expects a floor vote for speaker as soon as 3 p.m. today. Hern also announced his running to succeed Scalise as majority leader. But the timing of the vote remains up to Scalise.

Fox News Medical Analyst Marc Siegal M.D., writes for Fox News Opinion about the "game-changing" approach to Steve Scalise's cancer that he says will make his fit to lead the House of Representatives.

"Symptoms of multiple myeloma include bone pain, fractures, fatigue, weight loss, frequent infections. Steve Scalise has a lot to deal with in his treatment and recovery from this dreaded cancer.

"But as with his near deadly gunshot wound, I would bet on his courage, perseverance, positive attitude, and faith to bring him there. I believe he is fit to heal and fit to lead," he says in a column.

Republicans chose Scalise as their candidate over House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan. The vote was by secret ballot. Scalise won 113 votes, Jordan won 99.

A House-wide vote is now expected as early as 3 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon. Democrats are expected to select Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries as their candidate,

The House is expected to vote on the next speaker of the House as soon as 3pm today after Rep. Steve Scalise secured the Republican nomination for the gavel.

Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla. told Fox News that he expects a floor vote for speaker as soon as 3 p.m. today. Hern also announced his running to succeed Scalise as majority leader.

However, the timing of the vote is still up to Scalise.

Republicans chose Scalise as their candidate over House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan in the last hour. The vote was by secret ballot. Scalise won 113 votes, Jordan won 99.

It comes after House Republicans voted minutes earlier to table a motion to raise the threshold for electing a speaker to 217 — a majority of the conference.

Scalise had an edge with moderate Republicans and establishment GOP lawmakers while Jordan was a favorite of top members of the House Freedom Caucus, which Jordan used to chair.

It comes after the ouster last week of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who had served in the position since January.

Fox News' Tyler Olson and Liz Elkind contributed to this report.

Majority Leader Steve Scalise has won the Republican nomination to be the next speaker of the House.

Republicans chose Scalise as their candidate over House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan. The vote was by secret ballot. Scalise won 113 votes, Jordan won 99.

It comes after House Republicans voted minutes earlier to table a motion to raise the threshold for electing a speaker to 217 — a majority of the conference.

Scalise had an edge with moderate republicans and establishment GOP lawmakers while Jordan was a favorite of top members of the House Freedom Caucus, which Jordan used to chair.

Scalise has been the longtime no. 2 of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy -- who was ousted last week by his own party -- despite a years long rivalry between the two men.

Democrats are expected to nominate Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries as their candidate. A House-wide vote is expected this afternoon.

Fox News' Liz Elkind and Tyler Olson contributed to this report.

House Republicans have finished voting and secret ballots are now being tabulated to see who will emerge as their next candidate for speaker.

The race is between Majority Leader Steve Scalise and House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan. The vote will be via secret ballot and there could be multiple rounds if neither nominee gets enough votes to secure the nomination on first try.

It comes after House Republicans voted minutes earlier to table a motion to raise the threshold for electing a speaker to 217 — a majority of the conference.

Scalise had an edge with moderate republicans and establishment GOP lawmakers while Jordan was a favorite of top members of the House Freedom Caucus, which Jordan used to chair.

What comes next after the votes are counted by hand is an expected House-wide vote for speaker. Democrats are expected to nominate Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries as their candidate.

That vote is unlikely to occur until 3pm ET at the earliest.

In the House Republican Conference meeting, lawmakers have tabled a potential rules changes that would have increased the threshold for House Republicans to nominate a speaker.

The motion would have increased the threshold to nominate a speaker from a simple majority to 217 votes. But the members voted to table the motion, two sources tell Fox News Digital. The move will make it much more likely that Republicans will choose a candidate today.

They have not started voting on their nomination for speaker yet. The vote will be via secret ballot and there could be multiple rounds if neither nominee gets enough votes to secure the nomination on first try.

Reps. Jim Jordan and Steve Scalise are the candidates to take the gavel.

“I'm looking forward to going in there, obviously we have a very important vote,” Scalise said ahead of the vote.

Meanwhile, a Jordan spokesperson told Fox Digital that Jordan is "confident" ahead of the vote.

Fox News' Liz Elkind, Tyler Olson and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

In the House Republican Conference meeting, lawmakers voted on a motion to table a rules changes that would increase the threshold for House Republicans to nominate a speaker.

The motion would increase the threshold to 217 votes. But the members are voting on a motion to table the change, and the votes are currently being counted.

They have not started voting on their nomination for speaker yet.

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy dismissed the idea that other members will nominate him during the House GOP speaker election as he walked into the meeting this morning. 

"No, I asked them not to nominate me," he said.

McCarthy was ousted from the speakership last week. Reps. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio and Steve Scalise, R-La., are in the running to replace him.

The House Republican Conference is currently meeting to decide on its nominee to take the gavel.

Fox News' Tyler Olson contributed to this report.

Both Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., and Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, have entered the closed-door conference meeting where House Republicans will pick their next candidate for speaker Wednesday.

Scalise briefly spoke to reporters on the way into the meeting, vowing to put a resolution supporting Israel on the House floor as soon as possible if he is elected. 

“I'm looking forward to going in there, obviously we have a very important vote,” Scalise said. “It's really, really important that this Congress get back to work, we select a speaker, go to the House floor, get to 218 and then get the House working again.”

“The first order of business under Speaker Steve Scalise is bringing strong resolution expressing support for Israel. We've got a very bipartisan bill," he said.

Scalise ignored questions on how long he thought it would take for House Republicans to coalesce around a new leader.

Republican Rep. Bob Good of Virginia, one of eight House Republicans who voted to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., last week, told reporters on Wednesday morning that he is supporting Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, for the top job.

Good made the comments on the way into a closed-door meeting where Republicans are electing their next speaker of the House.

The Virginia Republican is one of several members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus to come out in support of Jordan, one of the group’s founders.

Jordan currently has more public endorsements than Majority Leader Steve Scalise, but that’s by no means a bellwether — roughly two-thirds of the conference has not yet said who they are voting for for speaker.

Another key Jordan supporter is House Freedom Caucus policy chair Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas.

The earliest the House could vote for speaker would be at 3 p.m. today.

The House Republican Conference meeting is underway, Fox News Digital is told.

The conference is meeting in the usual hearing room for the Ways & Means Committee, and are holding its internal election to select the nominee for speaker of the House. The vote will be held by secret vote.

It is possible in this meeting the conference could also vote on internal rules changes ahead of a speaker vote.

Fox News' Tyler Olson contributed to this report.

Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., is opposing a House GOP conference rule change that would raise the threshold needed to elect a nominee for speaker, Fox News Digital has learned.

House Republicans are expected to vote on the amendment behind closed doors this morning ahead of a secret ballot to pick their candidate to put up for a House-wide speaker vote.

The amendment would raise the threshold needed to select a speaker to 217, a House-wide majority. Currently it takes a simple majority of the conference.

It’s widely seen as a potential proxy battle between Scalise allies and those of his rival for speaker, Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.

A Jordan spokesperson told Fox News Digital the Judiciary chairman is "confident" ahead of a vote this morning.

Scalise also expressed his confidence about his chances this morning to "Fox & Friends."