Byron Donalds drops out of nomination race for Speaker

Byron Donalds as Trump's VP? Could happen.

U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds has dropped out of the race to be the next Speaker of the House. The Naples Republican came in third place in four ballots during a GOP conference meeting before being eliminated.

He consistently came in behind House Majority Whip Tom Emmer and House Republican Vice Chair  Mike Johnson. Rather than going through a ballot with just three candidates, Donalds dropped out of the race.

The sophomore Congressman announced a run Friday after the conference dumped U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio as the nominee. While Donalds had supported Jordan, the Ohio Republican failed to secure a majority of the vote on the House floor over three ballots last week.

Donalds was one of nine candidates to announce a run for Speaker in the last week, with two dropping out before the conference vote began.

While Donalds only won his seat in the House in 2020, he has quickly gained prominence. That rose in January, when U.S. Rep. Chip Roy promoted Donalds as an alternative to U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy for Speaker within the Republican caucus.

As a result, Donalds played a key role in negotiating a rules package that ultimately garnered enough votes for McCarthy to become Speaker.

Donalds reportedly took criticism in a Speaker candidate forum Monday for asking for a Capitol office, which he did not procure. But the second-term Representative did secure himself a spot on the GOP Conference Committee, giving him a say on who fills every committee Chairmanship in the House.

McCarthy’s tenure as Speaker ended prematurely earlier this month after U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Fort Walton Beach Republican, motioned to vacate the Speaker’s Office. Eight Republicans joined with the entire Democratic caucus to oust McCarthy from the job.

As the only member of the Freedom Caucus running Tuesday, Donalds won support from key conservative voices in the conference, including U.S. Reps. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Chip Roy of Texas.

Donalds also had Florida lawmakers rallying behind him, with nearly half of state’s GOP Representatives openly supporting him ahead of the conference.

U.S. Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart, a Hialeah Republican, gave the nominating speech for Donalds in the conference meeting. U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, a Longboat Key Republican, actually voted for Donalds twice on the floor over Jordan. Donalds also boasted endorsements from U.S. Reps. Kat Cammack, Scott Franklin, Carlos Giménez, Cory Mills, John Rutherford and Michael Waltz.