After Republican Jim Jordan (R-OH) failed to secure enough votes for House Speaker, Florida Republican Byron Donalds (Fla.) threw his hat into the race.
On Friday, Donalds announced his candidacy to take over for former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) before he is ousted earlier this year.
According to close sources, Donalds will seek support in a closed-door vote from the GOP conference, which could come as early as Monday.
In addition to Donalds claiming he won enough votes in the Speaker’s ballots, Rep. Vern Buchanan (Florida) endorsed Donalds in the second and third rounds of voting this week.
“We will need to resolve this race quickly,” Buchanan said in a statement to Florida Politics. “I served with Byron; is a conservative supporter, and I hope my colleagues will consider his name as we look for further solutions. It’s time for Florida to have a seat at the table.”
Florida Politics noted that Buchanan previously supported Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) before the Republican dropped out of the race. It is also worth mentioning that he was reluctant to apply for Jordan; But when the Ohio congressman saw that his nomination had expired after three failed votes, Buchanan jumped at the idea.
Rep. Cory Mills (Florida) also supported the Sarasota resident.
I supported @Jim_Jordan for our next Speaker. Unfortunately, my votes for him to remain the speaker-designate on the floor and at the conference were not enough.
Now I support it @ByronDonalds for the next Speaker of the House 🇺🇸
— Cory Mills (@CoryMillsFL) October 20, 2023
More from Florida Politics:
It’s worth noting that Donalds supported Jordan in all three votes this week. He was initially supportive in January Kevin McCarthy but he resigned after several votes and after Rep. Chip Roy from Texas suggested that Donalds would be a better speaker. As a result, Donalds was now able to negotiate concessions on principles with McCarthy ultimately support Republican from California when he won in the 15th round… Donalds revealed his name and ambitions to members. Now, Florida lawmakers consider Donalds a robust choice for speaker.
Donalds has long been a supporter of former President Trump and made headlines when he spoke out against corruption within the Biden family. He pointed to President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, and the questionable ways the two profit from overseas.
