Key House Republican calls for delaying leadership vote

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Smith on Monday called for delaying the lower chamber’s selection of a new Republican leader, echoing similar calls among Senate lawmakers.House Speaker Mike Johnson does not plan to remain the party leader in the minority and both Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and Majority Leader Steve Scalise are vying to replace him. In a social media post, Smith called for the party to take time to process their midterm losses before committing to a path forward.
“We are less than a week removed from Tuesday’s elections, and need to understand how and why we lost the trust of the American people,” he said. “We also need, as a Conference, to address how our rules have empowered members to vote against rules, bills, and even the Speaker. Failing to address these issues before choosing someone new to lead our Conference is doing a disservice to whoever we choose as Republican Leader.”
In the upper chamber, a growing number of Senators have called for delaying their leadership vote. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has said he disagrees with a delay, but would hear their arguments.
He did, however, call for a “robust” conversation about the party’s path forward. Thus far, no Senator has announced a challenge to his leadership.
Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent at Just the News. Follow him on X.

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