Several lawmakers are launching bids for the No. 4 position in House GOP leadership — seemingly the only wide open race after Donald Trump tapped Rep. Elise Stefanik for UN ambassador.
Reps. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) and Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) are officially running for conference chair, according to McClain and a person with direct knowledge of Cammack’s plans.
McClain is presently serving in House Republican leadership as the conference secretary. Cammack has worked as recruitment chair of the House GOP campaign arm and unsuccessfully ran to lead the Republican Study Committee two years ago.
Other Republican candidates are believed to be weighing bids as well, including Reps. Blake Moore (R-Utah) and Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), who challenged Stefanik for the position last term.
Candidates will only have two days to campaign, since the House GOP’s internal leadership votes are set for Wednesday afternoon.
The House GOP conference chair leads the party’s messaging, a critical position as Republicans prepare to try to pass Donald Trump’s agenda in what increasingly looks like an entirely GOP-controlled Congress. The House majority remains uncalled, but Democrats’ path to victory has gotten slimmer. Regardless, the majority will remain narrow.
Stefanik ascended to the role after the party’s then-leadership under former Speaker Kevin McCarthy mobilized to remove then-Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) from the perch over her frequent and public criticism of Trump after Jan. 6.
