After a series of secret ballots — in which he racked up nearly 100 objectors — and an official roll call vote that saw more than 25 Republicans publicly state their intentions to vote for someone else on the House floor, Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., became the third nominee to replace ousted Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., as speaker in the past three weeks.
Emmers, who currently serves as the majority whip, reportedly received 117 votes from the Republican conference in closed-door votes after five rounds of voting. House Republican Conference Vice Chair Mike Johnson of Louisiana got 97. The day started with eight candidates.
In an official roll call vote, Emmer received what Punchbowl News' Jake Sherman described as "a gigantic pool of nos."
Emmer, unlike the majority of candidates, voted to certify the 2020 presidential election results. He was, however, one of more than 100 Republicans who signed an amicus brief asking the Supreme Court to throw out Joe Biden’s wins in Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Members of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus were divided on Tuesday's vote, with members like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., voting against Emmer and for Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, who lost his bid for speaker last week after three rounds of failed votes, and Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who lead the revolt against McCarthy, voting for Emmer on roll call.
For his part, Emmer has reportedly vowed to stay in voting chambers until the conference can get to 217 before allowing a full floor vote.
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