House Republicans elect Jim Jordan as minority leader 106-73 as the party prepares to lose control of the chamber

What happened

House Republicans on Tuesday chose Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio to lead them in the next Congress, when the party will be in the minority. According to the Associated Press report published by PBS NewsHour, Jordan defeated Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana 106-73 in a secret ballot vote of Republicans who will serve in the next Congress.

The vote follows last week's midterm elections, which PBS NewsHour described as an election debacle for the GOP. ABC News reported that as of Tuesday, House Democrats held a 254-166 margin over Republicans going into the 120th Congress, with 15 races still undecided. More coverage of the results is in our elections section.

Who the House Republicans chose

Jim Jordan

Jordan, 62, chairs the House Judiciary Committee and co-founded the House Freedom Caucus, serving as its first chairman, according to the AP. ABC News reported he has led Republicans on the Oversight and Judiciary committees and was first elected in 2007. In his pitch, Jordan said, "I am battle-tested on the oversight front and I know the Democrats' playbook."

The AP reported that Jordan warned of coming Democratic oversight efforts, with numerous investigations of the Trump administration expected. He told colleagues that "offense, not defense, wins elections."

Steve Scalise

Scalise, 61, has held GOP leadership posts since 2014, serving as whip and then majority leader, the AP reported. He pointed to his fundraising, saying he raised $67.9 million for this year's midterms. Jordan and Scalise both ran for speaker after Kevin McCarthy was ousted, a contest eventually won by Mike Johnson.

Other House leadership posts

ABC News reported that Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota, the current majority whip, was elected minority whip, beating Rep. August Pfluger of Texas. Rep. Lisa McClain of Michigan was elected conference chair, the No. 3 post, over Reps. Erin Houchin of Indiana and Greg Steube of Florida. Johnson announced last week he would not run for minority leader, according to ABC News.

Senate Republicans keep Thune

In the Senate, Republicans approved Sen. John Thune of South Dakota by acclamation to remain their leader in the minority, ABC News reported. The vote came after a morning meeting that turned into what was described as a frank discussion of the midterm results, which left Republicans down at least seven Senate seats with two races yet to be decided.

Some Republicans said they were unsure about keeping Thune, but no challenger emerged, according to ABC News. Sen. John Barrasso stays as whip and Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas stays as conference chair. Sen. Bernie Moreno, who was unopposed, will chair the National Republican Senatorial Committee, replacing Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. Thune said, "Obviously, the election result was not what we had hoped for."

Calls to slow down

ABC News obtained a letter sent Monday in which dozens of Republican National Committee members asked congressional Republicans to delay leadership elections in both chambers for 30 days. The letter said members should understand what went wrong before voting, adding, "Holding elections first gets that backward." Both chambers held their leadership choices on Tuesday anyway.

Who is expected to lead the House

According to the AP, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York is expected to become the next House speaker, the first African-American to hold the job. Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts is expected to become majority leader, which would make her the first woman in that role. For more national political coverage, see our nation section.

What to watch next

• The outcome of the 15 House races ABC News reported as still undecided as of Tuesday.
• The two Senate races that had yet to be decided, according to ABC News.
• Whether Hakeem Jeffries becomes speaker and Katherine Clark becomes majority leader, as the AP reported is expected.
• Democratic oversight in the new Congress, with numerous investigations of the Trump administration expected, according to the AP.