Last year, Jim Jordan failed to become speaker. But his rise in the GOP may not be over yet

BOARDMAN, Ohio – For years, the sign hung in the corner of the Republican Party headquarters in Mahoning County, Ohio, collecting dust.

“We welcome the future Speaker of the House of Representatives Jim Jordan”- it was written.

Donald Skowron, a retired Youngstown police officer who stenciled the sign in 2015, made sure it was put up again, properly prepared for the occasion, when Jordan visited last week as part of a campaign visit for this year’s election .

Jordan didn’t acknowledge the sign and instead focused his brief remarks on the candidates in Ohio’s most competitive races who could take control of the House and Senate.

But the Ohio Republican’s leadership ambitions were clearly visible, if unspoken, during his multi-state tour aimed at boosting GOP House candidates.

Jordan denies that he is seeking any leadership position, and in an interview with The Associated Press in the lobby of the Marriott hotel, he said his goal is to help maintain Republican control and lead the House Judiciary Committee for the next two years.

“I’m focused,” Jordan said when asked about running for an executive position, then switched gears. “We will win and Mike Johnson will be the speaker and President Trump will be in the White House,” he said.

But according to lawmakers and GOP advisers, the 60-year-old acted less like an influential committee chairman in the run-up to Election Day and more like an “informal” member of the House Republican leadership team. Many see his activities as a sort of shadow race to become GOP leader, especially if the party loses its majority and wants to start over.

Jordan has appeared with officials and candidates in Colorado, Arkansas, Missouri and Michigan. He has been active in his home state of Ohio, which hosts two of the most competitive House races in the country.

Rep. Michael Rulli, R-Ohio, who spent several days with Jordan as he trekked across the state from Toledo to Akron, said Jordan was “working around the clock.”

“I really think he’s an informal member of the leadership team,” Republican candidate Kevin Coughlin, who is in a tight race for Ohio’s 13th District, told the AP. “There is no doubt about it that he is involved in decision-making.”

Jordan, once hated by Republican leaders, has transformed from an outside agitator to a party activist. The change comes amid a broader transformation of the GOP, first under the Tea Party and now in the era of Trump, who is seeking another term in the White House.

Coughlin, who has known Jordan since both men served in the Ohio Statehouse, said Jordan “has figured out how to balance principle and effectiveness.”

“You know, if you’re the type of person who just wants to burn the place down when you don’t get your way every time, you’re not going to be a very effective person,” Coughlin said. “And I think he’s figured that out by now.”

Jordan is a beloved figure in the GOP base, in part because of his boxing style on Capitol Hill, where he is known for sparring with Democrats during committee hearings.

Republicans facing both difficult and easy races across the country were eager to run alongside Jordan, wanting both the enthusiasm he brings as voters line up to take selfies with their MAGA darling and the fundraising support, that it generates from conservative donors.

Last month alone, Jordan donated $1.5 million to the National Republican Congressional Committee, the GOP’s campaign arm, according to recent Federal Election Commission disclosures. That brings his total giving this cycle to $2.5 million, one of the largest amounts he has given since arriving in Washington in 2007.

One GOP adviser said the cash flow to Jordan came at a time when it was needed as the party had struggled for months to match Democrats in fundraising.

Certainly, Jordan’s campaign efforts are overshadowed by those of Speaker Johnson, who has been crisscrossing the country for months as the GOP’s majority decision-maker, raising more than $26 million for the NRCC since winning the gavel a year ago. Although his leadership future is uncertain, Johnson has a powerful ally in Trump. If Republicans won a majority, his ability to take the gavel would be greatly strengthened.

And despite his popularity among his peers, Jordan’s potential campaign for a leadership role faces a major obstacle: Rep. Steve Scalisemajority leader in the House of Representatives.

Scalise is also well-liked by his colleagues and has been a source of funding for House Republicans over the years, building valuable support in each leadership race. Scalise has raised $15.2 million for NRCC over the past few months, according to financial disclosures, bringing his total raised this cycle to just over $55 million.

But Scalise ran unsuccessfully for speaker last year while pursuing treatment for blood cancer. He assured his colleagues that despite his health problems, he could handle the job.

For now, Jordan is building bridges and allies in unlikely corners of the party, trying to prove that his political skills go beyond being a signatory and showing loyalty to Trump.

“I learned a long time ago that victory trumps defeat. So we try to win. And we try to help everyone,” Jordan told the AP.