One of the two Republicans mounting a challenge to House Speaker John Boehner’s leadership said Tuesday the number of members poised to vote against another term for Boehner is growing.
Florida Rep. Ted Yoho, who is just starting his second term in the House, is collaborating with the House’s most conservative members to spark a second round of voting on Boehner’s status as House speaker, a move that could shake confidence in Boehner’s leadership in the opening days of a new Republican majority in both chambers of Congress.
While Boehner’s allies have said they are confident a second vote won’t happen, about a dozen Republicans have indicated publicly they will vote against Boehner.
“We’re at over a dozen right now and you’re going to see more people get on and decide not to vote for the current leadership,” Yoho said Tuesday on CNN’s New Day. “It’s time for new leadership.”
The House will vote on Tuesday afternoon to select their speaker for the new Congress and ultraconservatives will need at least 29 Republicans to vote against Boehner to get to a second round on the speaker vote.
Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas is also throwing his name into the running to overthrow Boehner.
Yoho painted his challenge to the establishment leadership as a “vote against the status quo” and a rebuke of Boehner’s leadership, which Yoho and his allies have called weak, short-sighted and eschewing regular order in favor of cobbled compromise.
Yoho insisted his message is resounding with other Republicans.
“We announced on Saturday that we were going to throw my name in the hat and you’ve seen a groundswell, a grassroots movement of people saying, ‘You know what, I appreciate you offering us an alternative because I’m tired of the status quo,'” Yoho said. “It’s either a vote for the status quo or for a new direction for the Republican Party.”