As Thursday began in the saga to elect speaker designee, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) as the new Speaker of the House, there appeared to be a flurry of activity. Several of my colleagues kept up with it, including Teri Christoph, who wrote earlier on Thursday:

What is clear is this: Jordan is well short of the 217 votes he needs to wield the speaker's gavel. He garnered 200 votes on the first ballot, but that number dropped to 199 in the second round. 

With things headed in the wrong direction, members from both sides of the aisle began rallying around the idea of empowering Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry to take charge.

The GOP House conference was scheduled to meet on Thursday at 11 a.m. to discuss the next steps. Early reports are that Jordan will get behind the plan to make McHenry the temporary leader of the House.

Then news broke on Twitter/X Thursday morning that Jordan would continue to seek the speaker's seat, and wanted a meeting with the members who voted no:

BREAKING — JORDAN says he expects another speaker vote.

Says he wants to meet w the 20 nos.

— Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) October 19, 2023

But after a meeting during the afternoon with Jordan, the nos are still nos:

Rep. John Rutherford (Fla.) confirmed Thursday he is still against Jordan for Speaker following the Speaker designate’s meeting with holdouts.

Asked if he believes there is no path forward for Jordan’s Speakership, Rutherford told reporters, “Correct and that’s what the meeting was about.”

Rutherford did not vote for Jordan on either of the first two rounds of voting, instead voting for House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.)

The live reporting on the meeting continued with the remarks from Reps. Carlos A. Gimenez (R-FL) and Mike Kelly (R-PA):

Gimenez told reporters that he plans to vote for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) again on the House floor after previously voting for him in the first two ballots.

“He was listening to us and he had some points. And it was it was good frank conversation,” Gimenez said. “I, you know, I want to thank him for the opportunity. I thought that it was it was productive, but it did not change my mind.”

Kelly said he plans to back Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), noting that he is “supporting the guy that I voted for and who won the election on October 11.” Kelly voted for Scalise on the first ballot but voted for former Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on the second.

Lastly, one member who voted against Jordan in the first two ballots says he continues to support the retention of McHenry on a temporary basis. After the meeting, Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) said:

In the absence of an immediate resolution, we must empower Speaker Pro-Tempore Patrick McHenry to serve as Speaker temporarily to allow us to get back to work, move important legislation, while we settle on a permanent Speaker.

The report continued:

He said that the “best thing” to happen next “is for cooler heads to prevail, past grievances to be dropped, and for Republicans to concede that ousting Kevin was a mistake and set things right.”

With the speaker situation still at a stalemate, a planned Thursday vote was canceled:

The GOP's Speaker nominee scrapped his plans for a third vote on Thursday as marathon meetings drug into the evening, but produced no signs that he made progress in swaying holdouts.

Jordan's office says a third round of voting for the speakership will take place at 10 a.m. Friday. We promise to keep you posted on developments.

Related:

Where Has Matt Gaetz Gone Since His Motion to Vacate the Chair?