Jordan received a vote for Speaker of the United States House of Representatives in the 113th Congress from a fellow right-wing conservative, Tea Party Caucus chairman Tim Huelskamp of Kansas. Jordan received two votes for Speaker during the 114th Congress. On July 26, 2018, Jordan announced his bid for Speaker following resignation of Paul Ryan, but lost to Kevin McCarthy. His campaign ended when Democrats took the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. Subsequently, Jordan campaigned for House minority leader. Former Ohio state representative Capri Cafar said that Jordan "is someone who has built a reputation as an attack dog, someone who is media savvy, someone who is a stalwart supporter of the president and who has the skill necessary to take the lead for the GOP". He lost his bid to California Republican McCarthy in a 159–43 vote.