Verified reporting
Verified reporting: what happened in the House
House Republicans on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, elected Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio as their leader for the next Congress, when the party will be in the minority after last week's midterm losses. Jordan, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, defeated Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana in a closed-door, secret-ballot election. The Associated Press and NBC News reported the vote as 106 to 73; NBC attributed the count to two Republican lawmakers in the room, and no official tally from the conference had been published at the time of writing.
Jordan will succeed outgoing Speaker Mike Johnson, who said after the election that he was stepping down from leadership. “Over the next two years, House Republicans will fight for American families,” Jordan told reporters after his win, according to NBC News. “When Democrats offer more government, we’ll offer more freedom.”
Down the ballot, NBC reported that Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota held off a challenge from Rep. August Pfluger of Texas and will serve as whip, the No. 2 job in the minority. Conference Chair Lisa McClain of Michigan beat back challenges from Reps. Erin Houchin of Indiana and Greg Steube of Florida. Speaker Johnson congratulated the new team on X, saying it is “well-equipped to stand in the gap” and that he looks forward to working with it “to earn back our majority.”
Verified reporting
Verified reporting: what happened in the Senate
Senate Republicans held their own leadership elections Tuesday after a day of closed-door meetings. A group led by Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin had asked to postpone the vote so the conference could first discuss the election results, and Sen. David McCormick of Pennsylvania said in a statement that “Tuesday is too soon.” The conference voted 31 to 15 to proceed, according to the AP and NBC News, and Johnson walked out in protest. Johnson told Semafor his objection was not about Thune, saying, “When you have this kind of defeat, you’d like to at least give people an opportunity to think about it.”
With no challenger, Sen. John Thune of South Dakota was reelected leader by acclamation, according to his spokesman as quoted by NBC News, along with the rest of the leadership team, including John Barrasso of Wyoming as whip and Tom Cotton of Arkansas as conference chair. Thune will serve as minority leader when the new Congress convenes in January.
Afterward, Thune said Republicans would do “whatever it takes” to get as much done as possible before then, according to Semafor's Burgess Everett. “That means extending the calendar here, the number of days we're here, the number of hours we're here,” Thune said. He did not announce a specific schedule or list of bills.
Legal / factual context
Context: the clock
Republicans still control both chambers until the new Congress begins on January 3, 2027. After that, NBC News projects Democrats will hold roughly 259 House seats. Democrats have not yet chosen their own leaders: House Democrats vote next week and Senate Democrats in early December, NBC reported.
Sources and reading
- House Republicans elect Rep. Jim Jordan as their next leader following election losses (NBC News, Nov. 10, 2026)
106-73 count per two lawmakers in the room; Jordan quotes; Emmer, McClain races; 31-15 Senate vote; acclamation per Thune spokesman Ryan Wrasse; McCormick statement; Democratic leadership timing. - Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio elected to lead House Republicans in the minority (AP, Nov. 10, 2026)
Secret-ballot result and 106-73 count. - Senate Republicans vote to keep John Thune as leader after steep election losses (AP, Nov. 10, 2026)
31-15 vote to proceed; Ron Johnson led the delay effort; Thune unopposed. - Senate Republicans defeat push for delays, reelect Thune leader (Semafor, Nov. 10, 2026)
Ron Johnson walkout and quotation. - Burgess Everett (Semafor) on X, Nov. 10, 2026, 4:35 p.m. ET
Thune's lame-duck 'whatever it takes' and calendar quotations. - Speaker Mike Johnson on X, Nov. 10, 2026, 4:39 p.m. ET
Congratulations to the new House GOP leadership team. - Scott and Lee Push a Lame-Duck Vote on the SAVE America Act (OG News, Nov. 8, 2026)
Our earlier coverage.
Reporting above is based on the cited records. The section labeled “Our view” is editorial opinion. This article is not legal advice. Our Gadsden Flag is an independent brand, not a government or military organization.
Conservative commentary · Our view
Our View: new titles, same oath
Leadership races are inside baseball. What voters will remember is whether the people they elected used the power they still hold. For less than eight more weeks, Republicans run the House and the Senate. That is not a consolation prize. It is a responsibility.
Thune's promise to stretch the calendar is welcome, and we will hold him to it. Longer hours only matter if they produce something worth having: honest spending decisions instead of another blind stopgap, real progress on election integrity like the SAVE America Act push we covered on November 8, and support for the men and women who defend this country. A lame duck spent on speeches and press releases would confirm every voter's worst suspicion about Washington.
Ron Johnson and the senators who asked to slow down were not wrong to want a reckoning after a historic loss. A party that refuses to ask what went wrong will keep doing it. But the reckoning cannot become an excuse to stall the work.
In the House, Jordan says Republicans will answer more government with more freedom. Good. A minority cannot pass laws, but it can make the constitutional case every day: limited government, the Bill of Rights including the Second Amendment, secure borders and a budget that does not mortgage our children. That message needs to be backed by a clear plan, not just a fighting posture.
New leaders, same oath. Finish the work, then go make the argument to the American people. United in Freedom. Defended by Patriots.