Smith backs Scalise for speaker in internal vote; Kean won’t say how he voted

A week after the House ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-California), House Republicans chose current Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana) today as their next nominee for Speaker of the House. Scalise beat Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) in a 113-99 vote.

Among New Jersey’s three House Republicans, Rep. Chris Smith (R-Manchester) voted for Scalise, Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis) voted for Jordan, and Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-Westfield) declined to divulge his speaker vote. Since it was conducted by secret ballot, Kean’s vote may never be definitively known. 

Kean is on the more establishment-minded end of the House GOP, though, and thus probably more in tune with Scalise than Jordan, a House Freedom Caucus member. Back in 2021, when Kean was still a congressional candidate running against a Democratic incumbent, Scalise endorsed Kean a week after he launched his campaign.

Now that he’s won the GOP caucus contest, Scalise is set to head to the House floor for a vote, though it’s not clear when that will happen. Van Drew told the New Jersey Globe that while he backed Jordan in today’s internal vote, he’s wholeheartedly committed to supporting Scalise when the full House convenes.

“I feel that Steve Scalise has won, and therefore we should go up there and support him, regardless of the fact that I was a Jim Jordan fan,” Van Drew said. “He’s got to get the votes, and it’s time to move on.”

Similarly, Smith’s office said that had Jordan won instead of Scalise, Smith would have backed Jordan on the floor.

Not all House Republicans, however, are as amenable as Van Drew and Smith. Some Republican members have said they still plan on voting for Jordan on the floor, while others have remained loyal to McCarthy, who chose not to run to regain the speaker’s office.

Since House rules require that a speaker win a majority of all voting House members – both Republicans and Democrats – that could present a serious problem for an easy Scalise ascent. Back in January, it took McCarthy 15 ballots to win the speakership thanks to opposition from a tranche of right-wing Republicans (combined with the entire Democratic caucus); Scalise may be about to confront a similar problem.

But even if there are issues on the floor, New Jersey’s Republicans probably won’t be causing them. All three backed McCarthy without issue nine months ago, and all are likely to do the same for Scalise now.