House Republicans Elect Jim Jordan Minority Leader as Chamber Tables Hegseth Impeachment

On Tuesday, House Republicans voted behind closed doors to make Jim Jordan of Ohio their next leader, choosing a hard-line conservative and close ally of President Trump over current Majority Leader Steve Scalise. Sources familiar with the tally told CBS News the vote was 106 to 73. Jordan, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee and has fought with Democrats for years, will lead a conference that expects to become the minority in January after losing more than 40 seats.

Jordan made a brief statement afterward and took no questions. "Over the next two years, House Republicans will fight for American families," he said, promising to offer more freedom when Democrats offer more government, and to carry that fight in committee, on the floor and on the stump. Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota kept his job as whip, which makes him Jordan's No. 2, after beating a challenge from Rep. August Pfluger of Texas. Speaker Mike Johnson called Jordan a mentor from his early days in Congress and said it is easier to keep a group together in the minority. He would not say how he voted, calling Jordan and Scalise "both my brothers." Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee had said he wanted a leader willing to admit Republicans made mistakes.

The same evening, the House blocked an effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, largely over the war with Iran. The chamber voted 211 to 204 to refer the resolution to the Judiciary Committee, which effectively kills it. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who is leaving Congress and led the push, was the only Republican to vote against the motion. Hegseth had dismissed the effort as a political spectacle.

The margin owed something to absences. Eleven Democrats and seven Republicans did not vote. The Democrats were Julia Brownley, Lou Correa, Laura Gillen, Steven Horsford, Jonathan Jackson, Nancy Pelosi, Brittany Pettersen, Melanie Stansbury, Haley Stevens, Marilyn Strickland and Frederica Wilson. The Republicans were Monica De La Cruz, Neal Dunn, Russell Fry, Julia Letlow, Tom Tiffany, Derrick Van Orden and Rudy Yakym. Correa had said earlier in the day that he was staying in his district for a medical procedure. Stansbury said a traffic incident and a police escort of a bus blocked her from entering the Capitol, and that the vote had just ended when she reached the chamber. She filed a report of a "no" vote, according to her statement, and added that Hegseth must be impeached now.

Democratic leaders had not whipped the vote. Rep. Pete Aguilar, chair of the Democratic Caucus, said members would decide for themselves based on the articles and that leaders did not put a finger on the scale. He and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries both said they would vote yes. Jeffries said he had not spoken with anyone on the floor team about what happened, but added, "This is not the end of it. It's just the beginning."

Massie said he was not surprised but was disappointed. "These people know what to do," he said of his colleagues, "They just can't bring themselves to do it." He compared the Nov. 3 election to the Titanic hitting an iceberg, with Republicans declining the life raft he offered. He plans to force a vote on a war powers resolution, and said it would show whether Republicans who blamed the war for their losses still back it.

Across the Capitol, Senate Republicans re-elected John Thune of South Dakota as leader by acclamation, according to his spokesperson, so there were no dissenters. Sen. Ron Johnson had pushed to delay the vote to discuss the midterm results, but the conference, after meeting for two hours in the morning and again in the afternoon, moved ahead. John Barrasso stays as whip, Tom Cotton as conference chair and Shelley Moore Capito as policy chair. Thune said the conference would extend its calendar and workdays to confirm judicial and executive nominees and fund the government.

Democrats face their own question next month. Bernie Sanders said he will not back Chuck Schumer for leader, saying he likes Schumer but that the time is now for change. Sen. Elissa Slotkin, standing with him, said she is not actively seeking the job. Sanders pointed to Sen. Chris Van Hollen, who has not ruled out running. Schumer said he is confident he will be elected. Massie's war powers vote and the Democratic leadership election are the next things to watch.