Steve Scalise won’t commit to full term after losing race for minority leader

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., the No. 2 Republican in the House of Representatives and the longest-serving figure among the chamber’s party leaders, declined to say whether he would commit to serving the full term in the upcoming 120th Congress.

“There’s no decision on what’s next,” Scalise said Wednesday.

“I have to get through these next few weeks, and then we’ll have a lot of decisions to make about what life in the minority will look like. But I certainly still have a great passion for this country.”

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House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., speaks alongside Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., right, and Rep. Mark Messmer, R-Ind., during a news conference at the Capitol Visitor Center on June 4, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Scalise’s response follows a loss to Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, in a bid to become the party’s new minority leader. His defeat now forces Scalise to decide whether he intends to retire or remain on Capitol Hill as a rank-and-file member of the minority as Democrats regain control of the House in January.

For now, Scalise stressed that he remains focused on securing the GOP’s priorities heading into the new year.

“We still have a lot to do. We’ve got a few weeks left in the lame duck session and, frankly, some really big problems ahead. I want to see us do everything we can while we still have that majority,” Scalise said.

“I have a lot more gas in the tank. Obviously we all know there are going to be some real changes coming in January. We still have work to do right now.”

Jordan defeated Scalise by 106 votes to 73 in Tuesday’s Republican election.

Scalise, who was elected in 2008 and first joined the Republican leadership in 2014, has proven to be a steady figure and spokesperson for conservative principles, even as the party has changed dramatically around him.

Scalise originally served as House whip alongside Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.

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Speaker John Boehner, Republican of Ohio, left, and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, Republican of Los Angeles, leave after a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on June 10, 2015, in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Although Boehner ultimately resigned after the party’s right flank accused him of failing to secure GOP priorities, Scalise remained a constant, continuing to serve as whip under his successor, Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis. Around the same time, Donald Trump, then just running for president, was beginning to gain momentum in the Republican primaries.

As the party’s core began to turn toward Trump, Scalise’s time in Congress and his personal well-being were called into question when he was shot during a congressional baseball practice in 2017.

Although the incident caused him health complications, the attack raised Scalise’s national profile.

“I just got out of the hospital. Rep. Steve Scalise, one of the truly great people, is in really bad shape – but he’s a real fighter. Pray for Steve!” Trump said in a social media post at the time.

In 2023, Scalise would climb to the No. 2 position, becoming majority leader after Republicans retake the House of Representatives under Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

And when McCarthy himself was removed from office for failing to meet Republican demands for spending cuts, Scalise launched an unsuccessful bid for president.

Instead, Scalise remained majority leader as Republicans rallied behind Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.

Asked if he would have done anything differently in his last attempt to lead the House Republican Party, Scalise said he had no regrets.

“Nothing that could have been done differently in the leadership race,” Scalise said.

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House Majority Leader Steve Scalise at the New York Stock Exchange before the morning session on April 15. (Adam Gray/Getty Images)

“There’s definitely a lot of weight lifted now. I mean, these leadership positions take a lot of time, a lot of focus. I love doing this job…it takes you away from your family, from other things that you like to do at home. I’ll have a little more free time there,” he added.

After the November 3 midterm elections, Republicans have just under seven weeks to advance their legislative priorities with their majorities in the House and Senate.

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The 120th Congress is scheduled to begin on January 3, 2027.