MAGA MINORITY

Trump Ultra-Loyalist Seizes Control of Shattered House Republicans

House Republicans picked a combative MAGA member to lead their caucus.

House Republicans chose MAGA Rep. Jim Jordan to be their new leader as they navigate being in the minority come January.

It gives the Ohio congressman a seat at the table as House Minority Leader after his previous attempts to take over as GOP House Speaker back in 2023 repeatedly failed.

Jordan bested Majority Leader Steve Scalise, who also ran for minority leader. Speaker Mike Johnson quickly took his name out of contention after Republicans suffered devastating losses in the midterms.

But Jordan’s leadership win was not an overwhelming victory. He was elected to the position by GOP caucus members in a 106 to 73 vote.

Jordan made a name for himself as a close ally of Donald Trump and has remained steadfast even as some other MAGA loyalists have deserted the president or been voted out of office.

The Ohio congressman is currently in his 10th term in office after he was first elected to represent Ohio’s 4th congressional district in 2006. Initially, he made waves as a conservative member who had no problems bucking House Republican leadership.

More recently, he’s made headlines as the House Judiciary Committee chairman, where he led investigations into the Bidens and special counsel Jack Smith.

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Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus were quick to celebrate his election to the leadership position as a known brawler happy to pick a fight with Democrats.

Democrats are already gearing up for a series of investigations into the Trump administration and what they call the “Trump Crime Family.” Jordan will largely be playing defense as Democrats take control with the biggest majority seen this century.

The Ohio lawmaker will now also play a bigger role in determining what exactly went wrong for Republicans as they try to recover from disasters across the country in the 2026 midterms, which has raised questions about the future of the party and MAGA.

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While Jordan beat Scalise for the top job, it was not a full cleaning-out of the House by Republican members, as Rep. Tom Emmer was reelected as GOP Whip and will thus remain in the number two position when the new Congress begins in January.

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Sarah Ewall-WicePolitical Reporter

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