Tom Emmer drops brief quest to be House speaker hours after becoming latest GOP pick

WASHINGTON — House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) has dropped out of the speaker’s race, only about four hours after the Republican conference voted him the next speaker-designate, according to two people familiar with the decision who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.

Emmer had been elected as the GOP speaker nominee Tuesday on a fifth ballot in an internal race that drew nine Republican candidates.

However, it became clear that Emmer could not attract a majority vote on the full House floor because of Republican holdouts in the narrowly divided chamber. Former president Donald Trump took direct aim at Emmer as he was trying to convert holdouts. In a social media post, Trump called Emmer a RINO - Republican in name only - and “totally out-of-touch with Republican Voters.”

Emmer, who has been in Congress since 2015, previously chaired the National Republican Congressional Committee - the House GOP campaign arm - for four years. He was the third Republican speaker nominee since the ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).

The vote count in the final round was Emmer, 117; Johnson, 97, according to Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.).

Republicans then began a roll-call vote “to find out where the problems are,” LaMalfa said - meaning how many Republicans are opposed to voting for Emmer on the floor. LaMalfa is worried about whether Emmer can secure the support of the 217 Republicans he needs to become speaker, he said.

“We have the same five to seven to eight that I don’t know are going to instantly gravitate” to supporting Emmer, LaMalfa said.

During the roll call, when asked how many “no” votes there have been for Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) in the roll call so far, Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.) told reporters, “Too many.”

Rep. Byron Donalds (Fla.) voluntarily dropped out of the speaker’s race after the fourth round of balloting Thursday, according to Rep. Don Bacon (Neb.). Rep. Kevin Hern (Okla.) did not receive enough votes to advance to the fifth round. On the third round of voting, Rep. Austin Scott (Ga.) was eliminated with 12 votes. Rep. Jack Bergman (R-Mich.) was no longer on the ballot before the third round, according to Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.). Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Tex.) dropped out after the first round, and Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Ala.) withdrew Tuesday morning. Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa.) dropped out of contention Monday.

Emmer, 62, has already received the support of the former speaker. On “Meet the Press” Sunday, McCarthy said Emmer is “head and shoulders above all those others who want to run.”

“We need to get him elected this week and move on,” McCarthy said.

In a statement shared Saturday, Emmer - who supported both Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Steve Scalise (R-La.) in their failed efforts to become speaker - announced his intention to seek the gavel. He highlighted his work as chairman of the NRCC and the connections he has formed with Republican members as majority whip.

“If given the opportunity to be your Speaker, we will use that same culture of teamwork, communication, and respect to build on the movements that brought us success, learn from our mistakes, and keep fighting for each and every one of you and our Republican majority,” he said.

But right-wing outlets and allies of former president Donald Trump are urging Republicans not to elect Emmer, who voted to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election for Joe Biden.

Donald Trump said he is trying to stay out of the House speaker race, but Monday night he shared two social media posts critical of Emmer, posts originally posted by far-right activist Laura Loomer on Trump’s Truth Social platform.

Loomer’s posts zero in on Emmer’s work with the National Popular Vote initiative - which supports abolishing the electoral college in favor of electing a U.S. president with a popular vote. Trump lost the popular vote to Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016, when he was elected to the presidency through the electoral college.

“Kevin McCarthy has endorsed Emmer, and tonight I’m going LIVE to expose him for who he really is,” Loomer wrote in one post.

Emmer spoke with Trump by phone Saturday, and they had a “productive” conversation, according to a person familiar with the call. But a person close to Trump played down the significance of the call, saying it was a “polite conversation. End of story.”

The weight of Trump’s support or opposition in the race is unclear. The former president previously supported Jordan for speaker.