Emmer is one Republican Democrats are willing to cooperate with GOP to elect as new speaker

House Democrats are willing to step aside to clear the runway for House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) to become speaker if they receive assurance that certain key policy issues will come to the House floor.

Leadership in the Democratic caucus told Punchbowl News they believe Emmer to be the best option among the seven GOP candidates. If Emmer agrees to fund the government and bring aid bills on Ukraine and Israel to the floor, Democrats would be open to helping him by sitting the vote out.

HOW HOUSE REPUBLICANS WILL PICK THEIR NEXT SPEAKER NOMINEE IN CROWDED FIELD

In doing so, they would give fewer votes to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), bringing the majority down and allowing Emmer to receive the necessary votes to become speaker.

Emmer’s fellow Minnesotan, Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), said he would sit the vote out if Emmer agreed to the Democrats’ wishes.

“The dysfunction in the House is a national and global security issue,” Phillips wrote on X, the platform formerly called Twitter. “I would sit-out the Speaker vote if Tom Emmer will fund our government at negotiated levels, bring Ukraine and Israel aid bills to the floor, and commit to rules changes to make Congress work for the people.”

Emmer, however, has made it clear that he has no interest in negotiating with the Democrats and wants to win the speakership through Republican votes alone.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

The House will convene at 9 a.m. to begin the fourth round of speaker votes. Eight candidates are in the running after Rep. Dan Meuser (R-PA) became the first to drop out of the race.

Since McCarthy’s ouster, House Republicans have nominated two candidates, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), to run for speaker. Neither has been able to get the 217 votes on the House floor to win the office, so both dropped out after it became clear they were not going to win an outright majority.