The lawmakers and those set to join the next Congress are gathering in the morning for a vote expected in the afternoon.
Scalise and Jordan have faced off before, both running to serve as House speaker after Kevin McCarthy was ousted from the job a little more than three years ago. Neither was able to rally the support necessary to secure the position, which eventually went to Mike Johnson, who is stepping aside from the leadership in the new Congress.
Now Republicans are headed into the minority, changing the nature of the job. The winner of the leadership race will inherit a historically small House Republican conference that is only beginning to grapple with its loss of power as President Donald Trump serves out his final two years in office. Leading the party back to the House majority in 2028 is sure to be a stiff climb, given the scope of Democratic victories in the midterms.
Scalise, 61, has held key GOP leadership positions going back to 2014, serving as party whip and then as majority leader. In 2017, he was critically wounded when a gunman opened fire at a baseball practice where several Republican lawmakers and staffers were preparing for an annual charity baseball game against Democrats. In 2023, he was stricken with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer that was successfully treated.
“Overcoming adversity is nothing new to me,” Scalise said in his pitch to colleagues.
Jordan, 62, is a co-founder of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus and served as its first chairman. He has been the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee for the last four years.
“Our job cannot be merely to spotlight how radical this new Democratic Party is — offense, not defense, wins elections,” Jordan said, a nod to his pugnacious reputation in committee hearings.
