#englishnews #jimjordan <br /><br />News Article :-<br />Republican Jim Jordan has lost the first vote in his bid to become US House of Representatives Speaker after stiffer-than-expected opposition from members of his own party.<br /><br />Despite intense lobbying, 20 Republicans refused to vote for the right-wing Ohio congressman.<br /><br />The Trump ally abandoned plans for another vote until Wednesday morning.<br /><br />Congress's lower chamber has had no Speaker since Kevin McCarthy was ousted two weeks ago in a right-wing revolt.<br /><br />Without a leader, the House is unable to pass any bills or approve White House requests for emergency aid. That includes potential help for Israel amid its war with Hamas.<br />Mr Jordan earned 200 votes in the first ballot on Tuesday, but he needs 217 to secure the Speaker's gavel.<br /><br />The Democratic nominee, Hakeem Jeffries of New York, earned more votes - 212 - than Mr Jordan, but Democrats are the minority party in the House, so it was not enough.<br /><br />Mr Jordan vowed to "keep working" and expressed confidence he would ultimately emerge victorious.<br /><br />"We're making progress. I feel good about it," he told reporters. "We're gonna keep going."<br /><br />Mr Jordan can only afford to lose four Republican votes in a chamber that his party controls by 221-212.<br /><br />The House Judiciary Committee chairman initially said a second vote was planned for Tuesday, but later said it would instead take place at 11:00 (15:00 GMT) on Wednesday.<br /><br />Republicans who refused to pick Mr Jordan voted instead for Kevin McCarthy, the former Speaker who was ousted on 3 October, or picked other candidates.<br /><br />Three even voted for Lee Zeldin, a New York congressman who retired from the House in January this year.<br /><br />A bloc of New York Republicans who voted against Mr Jordan cited his opposition to benefits for survivors of the 9/11 attacks, among other political issues.<br /><br />But another New York Republican, Elise Stefanik, called Mr Jordan "a patriot, an America First warrior who wins the toughest of fights".<br /><br />Mr Jordan has a record of feuding with members of his own party. He is a founding member of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, a group once labelled "legislative terrorists" by former Republican Speaker John Boehner.<br /><br />Mr Jordan held meetings after Tuesday's vote with some of the Republicans who voted against him.<br /><br />Several, however, suggested they would not budge, and some indicated the number of votes against Mr Jordan might actually grow.<br /><br />Colorado Republican Ken Buck said the Ohio congressman had still not acknowledged former President Donald Trump's 2020 election loss to Joe Biden.<br /><br />Another Republican who voted against Mr Jordan, Mario Diaz-Balart, of Florida, said he did not feel "pressure at all" to change his vote.<br /><br />He added that any effort to "intimidate" him would end any negotiations. "If that's the case, that's where you lose me," he said.<br /><br />Oregon's Lori Chavez-DeRemer, another of the anti-Jordan holdouts, suggested granting interim Speaker Patrick McHenry, a North Carolina Republican, addi
