Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said Sunday he plans to support Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) to be the next Speaker of the House.
“I’m supporting Jim Jordan,” Donalds said in an interview on Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”
“I believe, with where we are, it’s time for a new — a new look in House leadership, a new wave of House leadership. Jim Jordan is the person who can do that,” Donalds added.
Jordan announced his bid for the Speakership after eight Republicans and all Democrats voted last Tuesday to remove former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from the top post.
Jordan is running against House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), McCarthy’s longtime No. 2.
Donalds, who voted for Jordan for Speaker in January, praised Jordan for his ability, Donalds claimed, to unite the two factions of the conference: the conservatives as well as the moderates.
“I think Jim has the ability to bring our entire conference together, to be focused on the conservative principles that everybody in our conference wants to see accomplished. But, also, at the same time, Jim has been chairman of the Judiciary Committee. He’s been on the conservative side of our conference,” he said.
“But he’s also had a lot of dealings with the more moderate members in our conference, understanding what their issue sets are in their districts and trying to bring all that together, while at the same time also being one of the chief litigators in holding the Biden administration accountable,” he added.
The House Republican Conference is expected to meet for a candidate forum Tuesday to determine who Republicans think can reach 218 votes. The vote is expected Wednesday.
