Indiana Republican Victoria Spartz goes against the majority in House speaker vote

The U.S. House remained without a speaker Tuesday afternoon as about 20 Republicans, including Indiana's Victoria Spartz, voted for candidates other than GOP nominee Jim Jordan of Ohio.

Spartz, a Republican representing Indiana’s Fifth Congressional District, was the only House member who voted for U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., during the first round of voting.

The rest of Indiana’s delegation voted along party lines, with six Republicans voting for Jordan and the two Democrats voting for Minority Leader U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.

Indiana Republican Reps. Jim Banks, Erin Houchin and Rudy Yakym all expressed support for Jordan ahead of Tuesday’s vote with posts on X, formerly Twitter. Banks quickly endorsed Jordan after the vote two weeks ago in which U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was ousted from the speaker's seat.

Indiana Rep. Larry Bucshon initially initially said on X that he would support Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., but posted support for Jordan on Sunday.

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Spartz drew headlines earlier this year when she voted “present” multiple times during the long process to elect McCarthy as Speaker.

On Monday night, Spartz released a statement expressing concerns about Jordan’s leadership and if the Ohio Republican would adopt what she called “intimidation” tactics used by McCarthy to gain speaker votes.

“I would also like to remind Jim that Republicans are not sheep and will refuse to support him if he will try to use the same McCarthy intimidation techniques on members on the floor, even if I have to run again, so McCarthy and his friends have a chance to primary me,” Spartz said in the statement. The congresswoman announced earlier this year that she would not run for reelection in 2024.

Spartz, who lives in Noblesville, was reelected in 2022 to her second term representing the state’s Fifth Congressional District, which stretches north of Indianapolis. She was first elected to Congress in 2020.

Contact IndyStar's state government and politics reporter Brittany Carloni at brittany.carloni@indystar.com or 317-779-4468. Follow her on Twitter/X @CarloniBrittany.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana Rep. Victoria Spartz votes no on Jim Jordan for House speaker