Rep. Kevin McCarthy defeats Rep. Jim Jordan to become House minority leader

Kevin McCarthy.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) will serve as House minority leader, the Republican Party's top position in the next Congress, fending off a long-shot challenge from Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio).

McCarthy was elected to the position in the 116th Congress this afternoon with 159 votes to Jordan's 43, per NBC's Alex Moe. This news comes after Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) were both re-elected to their respective roles of Senate Minority Leader and Senate Majority Leader as expected, reports Vox.

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Meanwhile, Steve Scalise (R-La.) has also been re-elected as the party's whip. CNN's Chris Cillizza argues that the fact that Republicans have maintained the same leadership in the House after losing over 30 seats indicates that "everyone in Congressional GOP believes Trump is fully to blame" for the flip in power.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.