Combative right-wing Republican Jim Jordan has sought more time to build support for his bid for Speaker of the US House of Representatives after coming up short in a first vote.
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The Ohio lawmaker backed by former US president Donald Trump won 200 votes, short of the 217 needed to win the job, as 20 of his fellow Republicans voted against him.
Democrats seized on the prolonged Republican infighting to make the case for a compromise candidate that would enjoy the backing of both parties - a sharp departure from how Congress typically functions after the unprecedented ouster of Speaker Kevin McCarthy on October 3.
Tuesday's failed vote meant that the House remains leaderless, as it has been since a handful of Republican insurgents engineered McCarthy's removal.
That has left Congress unable to respond to wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, with just a month to go before the US government faces another partial shutdown deadline.
It was not clear whether Jordan would pick up more support or see his opposition grow in a second vote on Wednesday.
Jordan told reporters he was "making progress" after several hours of closed-door talks with Republicans.
"We gotta have a Speaker and it can't be some deal with the Democrats," he said.
McCarthy was ousted for reaching a deal with Democrats late last month to head off the fourth partial US government shutdown in a decade, triggering the current period of dysfunction.
If Jordan prevails, a conservative who has spent years fighting with leaders of his own party could end up in one of the most powerful jobs in Washington, putting him second in line for the presidency behind the vice president.
First he will have to win over more of the 20 Republicans who voted for other candidates.
Several Republicans from the New York City area said they voted against Jordan because he opposed benefits for survivors of the September 11, 2001, attacks, as well as tax policies and disaster aid that would help their residents.
Others objected to high-pressure tactics to get them to fall in line.
"I will not be pressured or intimidated," said Representative Mario Diaz-Balart, who voted for Scalise.
Representative Ken Buck said he was concerned that Jordan has still not acknowledged that Trump lost the 2020 presidential election to Democratic President Joe Biden.
Jordan was a "significant player" in efforts to overturn Trump's election defeat, a congressional investigation found.
Republicans control the House by a narrow 221-212 margin, giving them little room for error on divisive votes like this one.
New Republican challengers could emerge if Jordan does not pick up support. Potential candidates include Tom Emmer, the No.3 House Republican, and Patrick McHenry, who is temporarily filling the Speaker's chair.
Jeffries, the Democratic leader, said there have been "informal conversations" with Republicans about giving McHenry more powers to ensure the chamber can take up pressing matters like aid for Israel and Ukraine and US government funding.
Australian Associated Press
