House Republicans elect Jim Jordan as minority leader for 120th Congress
Republicans have elected Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, as House minority leader as the leadership of the 120th U.S. Congress begins to take shape following the 2026 midterm elections.
In an X post Tuesday, the House Republicans announced that Jordan was elected minority leader by members of the House Republican Conference. Jordan, the House Judiciary Committee chairman and a co-founder of the House Freedom Caucus, defeated outgoing Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., 106-73 in a closed-door, secret-ballot election.
The House Republicans also announced that Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., will serve as House minority whip in the 120th Congress. Emmer currently serves as House majority whip.
Jordan’s victory comes a week after the 2026 midterm elections, where Democrats picked up dozens of seats in the House and recaptured control of both the House and Senate. Unofficial results show Democrats have captured 253 seats in the House while Republicans have won 167. The remaining 15 races are too close to call.
At a press conference Tuesday, Jordan and Emmer gave remarks and appeared alongside the remaining members of the House Republicans’ leadership team for the 120th Congress, including House Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain, R-Mich., House Republican Conference Vice Chair Blake Moore, R-Utah, National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Brian Jack, R-Ga., House Republican Policy Committee Chair Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., and House Republican Conference Secretary Mark Alford, R-Mo.
Jordan’s elevation to the role of House minority leader comes after House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., announced that he would not run for minority leader in the 120th Congress. During a press conference Monday, Johnson told reporters that “After a lot of prayer and reflection, I didn’t feel like that was the best thing for me to do.”
Johnson expressed gratitude for his three-year tenure as Speaker of the House and reflected on the difficulties associated with the powerful position: “Most of you all didn’t know if I’d last three weeks. That’s OK.”
“We did it by a lot of patience, prayer and faith and with a great team,” he added.
Meanwhile, in the Senate, Republicans re-elected Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., to serve as the top Republican in the 120th Congress. Thune, who serves as Senate majority leader and ran unopposed, will hold the position of Senate minority leader when the new Congress assumes office on Jan. 3.
Like the House, the Senate will have a Democratic majority in the 120th Congress. Unofficial results show Democrats will hold at least 54 seats in the Senate while Republicans will hold at least 44. The remaining two races, in Alaska and Mississippi, are too close to call.
Thune spoke at a press conference Tuesday alongside other top Senate Republicans, including Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who was re-elected as Senate Republican Conference chair; Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., who was re-elected Senate Republican Conference vice chair; Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., who was re-elected as whip and will serve as Senate minority whip; Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., who will remain Senate Republican Policy Committee chair; and Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, who was elected to lead the National Republican Senatorial Committee, succeeding Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.
