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Georgia GOP Representative Reports Death Threats Following Vote Against Jordan

Rep. Drew Ferguson of Georgia, a Republican, disclosed on Thursday that he and his family were subjected to death threats following his decision to withdraw support for Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, also a Republican, in the race for Speaker of the House. Ferguson is the third representative to report experiencing such extreme intimidation.

In a message shared on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, Ferguson described the onset of threats against his family’s safety soon after he changed his vote during a subsequent round of balloting. He condemned these menacing actions as intolerable and indefensible.

Ferguson had initially supported Jordan in the preliminary vote but shifted his support to Majority Leader Steve Scalise from Louisiana in the following round. Scalise, however, had pulled out of the contention upon realizing his chances of victory were slim.

Ferguson cited his deep unease with what he perceived as aggressive strategies and undue pressure exerted by Jordan and his supporters to sway voting. Although he had intended to maintain support for Jordan in the subsequent vote, the intensification of hostility and coercion led him to reassess. He emphasized the unacceptability of such bullying behavior in a Speaker.

In related developments, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, an Iowa Republican, reported receiving a flurry of threats and intimidating phone calls after she switched her vote from Jordan to Rep. Kay Granger of Texas. Similarly, Rep. Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, confirmed that his spouse had been on the receiving end of anonymous menacing messages and calls prior to the vote, pushing for Bacon to support Jordan, which he did not do.

Responding to these reports, Jordan publicly denounced the threats, emphasizing the sanctity of personal convictions and calling for unity and decency.

Despite the support, Jordan failed to secure the necessary 217 votes during the second round, falling short as 22 members of his party voted against him. He garnered 199 votes, one fewer than in the initial round, while his counterpart, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, secured 212. A scattering of votes went to various other nominees, including McCarthy, Scalise, and former Speaker John Boehner.

In the aftermath, Jordan voiced his support for a resolution that would temporarily delegate Speaker responsibilities to Patrick McHenry, a North Carolina Republican, as he attempts to consolidate sufficient support for his candidacy. However, this strategy has met with resistance within the party, raising questions about the likelihood of such a resolution gaining approval on the House floor.