They Lost the House. They Chose Their Fiercest Fighter.
House Republicans picked Rep. Jim Jordan over Steve Scalise, 106–73, to lead them in the minority, choosing confrontation over a reset after their midterm defeat.
They Lost the House. They Chose Their Fiercest Fighter.
By Elena Cross | Prodigal Breaking News | prodigalbreakingnews.com
November 10, 2026
One week after losing the House, Republicans chose Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio as their leader for the next Congress. The vote, held by secret ballot, was 106–73 over Majority Leader Steve Scalise, according to sources cited by ABC News. Jordan helped found the House Freedom Caucus and, as Judiciary Committee chairman, led investigations into special counsel Jack Smith and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. Senate Republicans, meanwhile, re-elected John Thune as their leader.
[CONFIRMED] House Republicans elected Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio on Tuesday to lead their conference in the minority when the new Congress begins in January. He defeated Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana, 106–73, in a secret ballot, according to multiple sources cited by ABC News. Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota was elected whip, 103–76, CNN reports.
[CONFIRMED] Jordan helped found the House Freedom Caucus in 2015. As chairman of the Judiciary Committee, he led Republican investigations into former special counsel Jack Smith and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, two prosecutors who brought cases against President Trump. He ran for speaker in 2023 and fell short, topping out at 200 votes of the 218 needed.
[CONFIRMED] On the Senate side, Republicans re-elected John Thune as their leader by secret ballot, after some senators pushed to delay the vote until the party had reviewed its losses, the AP reports. Democrats have flipped seven Republican Senate seats so far, with races in Mississippi and Alaska still uncalled.
[CONFIRMED] Democrats are having their own leadership fight. Sen. Bernie Sanders and Sen. Elissa Slotkin said Tuesday they will not support Chuck Schumer as Democratic leader, and Sen. Chris Van Hollen said he is "actively calling" colleagues about a possible challenge. Schumer said he is "confident" he will be elected.
[COMMENTARY] A party can read a defeat two ways: as a message to change, or as a reason to fight harder. House Republicans chose the second. They passed over their No. 2 leader for the member best known for investigating the president's prosecutors. With Democrats preparing to use their new majority for oversight, Republicans picked the leader most ready to fight it.
Notice the pattern. Interrupt it.
— Elena Cross, Prodigal Breaking News
Sources: ABC News, "House Republicans elect Jim Jordan as minority leader for the next Congress" (Nov. 10, 2026); Bloomberg (Nov. 10, 2026); NBC News (Nov. 10, 2026); CNN live coverage (Nov. 10, 2026); AP, "Senate Republicans vote to keep South Dakota Sen. John Thune as leader" (Nov. 10, 2026).
Image: AI-generated illustration, not a photograph.
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