Speaker vote: Scott out on third ballot as Emmer inches toward nomination

Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA) received the fewest votes in the third round of voting for House speaker and has been removed from the race according to conference rules.

He joins Reps. Pete Sessions (R-TX) and Jack Bergman (R-MI), who were eliminated on the first and second ballots, respectively.

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

None of the four remaining candidates for speaker received a majority of the vote, though House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) received a plurality, meaning the election will advance to a fourth round. Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL), one of eight candidates heading into Tuesday, dropped out of the race shortly before voting began.

Emmer received the most votes, getting 100, while Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) received 43, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) received 32, Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK) received 26, and Scott received 12.

The conference vote comes three weeks after eight Republicans joined with Democrats to remove Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as speaker, plunging the House into chaos. Since then, Republicans have nominated two replacements, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH), but their candidacies fell apart in the face of internal opposition.

The third nominee, like those before him, only needs a majority of those voting in Tuesday’s election to become the next speaker designate. The real challenge will be corralling 217 votes, a majority of the entire chamber, on the House floor.

Jordan went three failed rounds of voting as two dozen Republicans eventually lined up against him. Scalise, the first pick for speaker, withdrew his name to avoid the same fate.

Republicans, particularly those who tanked Jordan’s candidacy, emerged from the conference’s candidate forum on Monday night optimistic the party would move past the sabotage and grudge-holding that defined the first two nominations. All candidates had signed a “unity pledge” to back the eventual nominee.

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Yet the question will be whether rank-and-file members coalesce around the speaker designate or if the conference will be forced to endure another round of division. More gridlock could prompt centrist Republicans to work with Democrats to elevate Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-NC) on an interim basis.

Republicans hope to hold a floor vote as soon as Tuesday night.

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