First posted on Instagram · @profilopolitics
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida called for a major shake-up in Republican leadership, arguing that Republicans should stop trying to elect leaders who oversaw the party's midterm losses — and threw her support behind Rep. Jim Jordan for minority leader over House Majority Leader Steve Scalise.
Luna said Republicans need leadership willing to fight harder on the issues that matter to Americans. She pointed to several issues she said GOP leadership failed to adequately address: banning congressional stock trading, capping federal student loan interest at 2.5 percent, taking action on glyphosate, and advancing the SAVE America Act. "We need to fight on these issues!" she said.
Luna had earlier accused leadership of obstructing her efforts on stock trading bans, central bank digital currency prohibitions and FISA reform, writing on X: "Let the reckoning begin."
The contest followed Speaker Mike Johnson's announcement on November 4 that he would not seek the minority leader post. Jordan, the House Judiciary Committee chairman since 2023 and a co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus, announced the same day that he would run, arguing the party had operated for too long without a clear plan. Scalise, who has held leadership roles since 2014 and has been majority leader since 2023, also ran.
On Tuesday, House Republicans elected Jordan as their next leader, choosing him over Scalise by 106 votes to 73 in a secret ballot, according to CBS News. Jordan, 62, is a hardline conservative and a close ally of President Trump. His election is a significant shake-up for House Republicans, who are looking to rebuild after losing more than 40 House seats in the November 3 midterm elections.
Scalise's backers had argued he was the steadier hand, pointing to his experience and his victory over Jordan in the 2023 speaker nomination race, when he beat Jordan 113 to 99 before ultimately withdrawing. Jordan's supporters argued Scalise was too closely associated with the failed midterm effort.
Jordan will now be tasked with trying to win back control of the House for the GOP. Johnson remains speaker until the new Congress is sworn in on January 3, when Democrats will take control of the chamber.