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You are here: Home / House of Representatives / The Race to 218 Republicans

The Race to 218 Republicans

October 4, 2023 at 2:11 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Punchbowl News: “It’s very possible that neither Scalise nor Jordan will be able to attract the support of 218 Republicans. At least that’s the buzz in the senior Republican ranks now. Both men are going to have difficulty in attracting the middle of the House GOP – which, to be clear, vastly outnumbers the hardline Republicans.”

“In other words, the question you should be asking yourself every time you hear some Republican is running for speaker is this: Will Reps. Don Bacon (R-NE), Mike Lawler (R-NY), Nick LaLota (R-NY), Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY), Marc Molinaro (R-NY) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) vote for this person? If the answer is no, this person probably can’t become speaker.”

“Now we aren’t saying Jordan and Scalise can’t convince these Republicans to vote for them. But we’re a long way from there. We’d be surprised if this leadership race wraps up by next Wednesday, as planned.”

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About Political Wire

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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