Utah’s delegation to US House supports Jordan for speaker

Photo: Townlift

"Friends don't let friends become speaker," Curtis, who represents Park City, said.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. House of Representatives still has failed to elect a speaker following Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s historic ousting earlier this month.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) has risen as the leading contender for the speaker position within the GOP; however, he has endured two unsuccessful attempts to garner enough votes, revealing the significant discord within the Republican party.

217 votes are needed to earn the speaker’s position. With the GOP’s slim majority of 221-212, Jordan can only afford to lose four Republican votes.

Jordan earned 200 votes in the first ballot on Tuesday, with 20 Republicans voting against him. In another ballot held on Wednesday, 22 Republicans voted against Jordan.

All of Utah’s delegates to the House; Rep. Blake Moore, Rep. John Curtis, and Rep. Burgess Owens, voted in support of Jordan in both rounds of voting.

“Friends don’t let friends become speaker,” Curtis, who represents Park City, said in a video posted to X (formerly twitter). “It’s a stinky job that I can’t imagine anyone wants.”

As to why Curtis supports Jordan as Speaker, a hard-right Republican and former Trump ally, Curtis explains that the decision is between Jordan and a Democrat.

“The next question is: why would you vote for Jim Jordan? Or why don’t you vote for Jim Jordan?” Curtis said in the video. “I want you to know, there’s a lot of polarization on Jim Jordan that won’t surprise anybody.

“The answer is very simple, when we voted today, we had two choices. We could vote for Hakeem Jeffries that the Democrats put forward, or Jim Jordan that we put forward.”

Curtis equated support for another Republican speaker besides Jordan to a write-in vote in a general election. “It is throwing your vote away.”

“It was an easy choice for me between Jim Jordan and Hakeem Jeffries. Not much to think about right there,” Curtis said in the video.

All 212 Democrats supported Hakeem Jeffries’s bid for speaker.

Utah’s Senators also weighed in on the ongoing struggle to establish leadership in the House. In an interview with CBS, Mitt Romney said House Republicans are “letting the tail wag the dog” by supporting Jordan for Speaker. “The great majority of Republicans in the House, I think would like to have someone that represents the mainstream of our party.”

Sen. Mike Lee has publicly voiced his support for Jordan.

“This is what I appreciate about Jim Jordan,” Lee wrote on a post on X about Jordan. “He expects all Republicans (including himself) to stand behind what they said on the campaign trail. He’s exactly what we need as speaker of the House. Republicans, let’s not botch this opportunity!”

The next vote to determine a Speaker is set for today, Oct. 19.