• U.S. Congressman Rep. Byron Donalds is gaining support from fellow Florida representatives for his bid for House Speaker, with six Floridian colleagues endorsing him.
• Florida Reps. John Rutherford and Vern Buchanan issued statements of support for Donalds on Tuesday morning in the span of ten minutes.
• Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart stated on Tuesday morning that he will be giving Donalds’ nominating speech to Republican federal lawmakers.

Update: Rep. Donalds failed to receive enough votes to become nominee. GOP lawmakers have selected Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana.

U.S. Congressman Rep. Byron Donalds is coalescing support among fellow statesmen in Washington for his House Speaker bid, with six Floridian colleagues now pledging support in his favor.

On Tuesday morning, Reps. John Rutherford and Vern Buchanan issued statements of support for Donalds within just ten minutes of each other. In his statement, Buchanan referred to Donalds as a potential advocate for the state at the highest levels of Capitol Hill.

As chair of the Florida delegation, I nominated [Byron Donalds] twice on the floor last week because our state deserves a seat at the table after delivering the Republican majority last fall,” said Buchanan on X. “Byron is a conservative warrior who is unafraid to shake up the system and reject the status quo. He has my full support!”

Earlier this week, Donalds garnered endorsements from Florida Republican Reps. Carlos Gimenez, Mike Waltz, and Mario Diaz-Balart, while Rep. Cory Mills expressed his public support for Donalds last week. Diaz-Balart stated this morning that he will be giving Donalds’ nominating speech to Republican federal lawmakers.

“[Byron Donalds] is respected by our Republican conference and I am proud to give his nominating speech,” said Diaz-Balart.

Donalds announced his intention to run for House Speaker last Friday following a back-and-forth affair that saw Rep. Kevin McCarthy ousted and would-be successor Rep. Jim Jordan fail to accrue necessary support. Donalds, who notably endorsed former President Donald Trump over Gov. Ron DeSantis and is viewed as an early frontrunner for Florida’s 2026 gubernatorial race, has thus far been largely viewed as a dark horse candidate by national media outlets, including CBS News, which referred to Minnesota representative Tom Emmer as the favorite to secure the leadership role.

Jordan, an Ohio Republican, stepped down from the House speakership race after failing for the third time to gather sufficient backing from his Republican colleagues, culminating in a secret ballot on Friday that saw a majority vote against his continued attempt to win the position. The House’s lack of a speaker has widespread implications, particularly in the sense that it cannot progress any legislation without one, posing a challenge, especially with time-sensitive decisions like government funding that is about to expire.

Five additional GOP representatives have entered the race for Speaker after a pair of lawmakers dropped out in the early hours of the morning. The remaining contenders include Emmer, Rep.Jack Bergman of Michigan, Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisianna, Rep. Kevin Hern of Oklahoma, and Rep. Austin Scott of Georgia. House Republicans will undergo a third round of voting to nominate a Speaker today after failing to rally behind a singular candidate in the first two votes.