Rep. Byron Donalds: 'I am a Candidate' for Speaker

Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., told Newsmax Friday that he has officially launched his candidacy to become House speaker.

"I am a candidate officially," Donalds said during an appearance on Newsmax's "Greg Kelly Reports."

"We put out a notice on our X [account] … telling the American people and my colleagues that I've thrown my hat in the ring to run for speaker of the House. Let's be very clear: our House right now, we're having some issues.

"We can repair those issues, but it requires us to be unified, No. 1, go back to business and secure our border, actually fund this government responsibly and then continue to lay out that conservative vision for the people who sent us here."

"That job can still be done," he said. "I believe I am the leader that can get that job done. That's why I threw my hat in the ring to run for speaker of the House."

Once a formality in Congress, the vote for House speaker has devolved into a bitter GOP showdown for the gavel with no foreseeable end.

Republicans abruptly dropped Rep. Jim Jordan on Friday as their nominee for the position, making the decision during a closed-door session after the hard-edged ally of Donald Trump failed badly on a third ballot for the gavel.

Donalds said when asking other members of Congress for their vote, "It's really about what do they want to see happen going forward with the House of Representatives."

"I believe we have to have a process going forward, where every member has a seat at the table," he said.

"In terms of my opponents, my colleagues here on Capitol Hill, I'm not going to talk bad about them because we actually agree on the very policies that we want to see happen, but it's really a matter of choice of who the conference believes is the best person to lead us forward."

"I'm going to talk about my ideas and my vision and how I think we can actually have a true game plan to achieve them, but, at the end of the day, I think where we are right now, as a Republican conference, whoever wins this race, we must all come together, support that person, get the majority working again so we can secure the borders of this nation,” he continued. “We are the only entity up here on Capitol Hill that's going to lead. It's not going to be the Senate, and we know it's not coming from the White House.”

Discussing Jordan’s failed bid for speaker, Donalds said he "supported Jim fully" and "endorsed Jim early" when he entered the race for the position.

"I stayed with Jim through every round of voting," he said.

House business has been at a standstill since Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was ousted from the speakership more than two weeks ago. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., and Jordan emerged as early candidates for the position, but neither was able to garner enough support from the Republican conference to win election.

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