GOP lawmaker urges Republicans to sign unity pledge to back eventual Speaker nominee

Rep. Mike Flood (R-Neb.) is urging his caucus to vote together as chaos over the House Speakership continues, launching a unity pledge for lawmakers to commit to a single candidate.

The House has been without a Speaker for nearly three weeks after nominees, Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), failed to secure enough support to win election to replace former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), after he was ousted from the top spot earlier this month.

Flood’s simple, two-paragraph pledge states that the signing member promises to vote for the eventual GOP-designated nominee, no matter who it is.

“The Unity Pledge is a new effort to help our conference put our differences aside and come together,” Flood said on X, formerly Twitter. “I’m urging all my colleagues to join this pledge so we can move forward with electing a Speaker and get on with the people’s business.”

Seven congressmen have launched Speaker bids, and five of them — Reps. Austin Scott (R-Ga.), Mike Johnson (R-La.), Pete Sessions (R-Texas), Jack Bergman (R-Mich.) and Kevin Hern (R-Okla.) — have said they would sign the pledge as of Saturday evening.

The two missing are Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Min.). Emmer is viewed as a top candidate for the job, holding the endorsement of McCarthy.

The intention of the pledge is to prevent yet another failed Speaker vote, after Jordan could not get 217 votes of support three times this week. 

Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), who was one of the 25 Republicans to vote against Jordan’s candidacy, endorsed the idea.

“I agree with the pledge and I thank Mike Ford for offering a solution,” Bacon said on X. “From the country’s beginnings, we supported the majority’s choice in the House This was violated multiple times starting in Jan, and we can’t have situation where a few ignore the rules. We can’t reward bad behavior.”

The House pledge is not unlike Republican National Committee’s (RNC) loyalty pledge for 2024 presidential hopefuls, which commits candidates to endorsing the party’s primary victor. Signing that pledge is a requirement for participating in debates.

The GOP frontrunner, former President Trump, has so far refused to sign the pledge.

The Florida state GOP attempted to implement a similar pledge for its state primary, but eventually dropped the idea.

After the GOP caucus selects a candidate on Monday, a fourth Speaker vote is expected next week.

Members of Congress have until noon on Sunday to officially declare their candidacy for the Speakership.