Tom Emmer Elected House Republican Whip

Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., addresses a crowd at a campaign rally for President Donald Trump
AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn
Sean Moran

House Republicans on Tuesday elected National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) Chairman Tom Emmer (R-MN) to be the next House Republican Whip.

Emmer won the election, beating out House Republican Chief Deputy Whip Drew Ferguson (R-GA) and Republican Study Committee (RSC) Chairman Jim Banks (R-IN). Emmer beat Banks 115-106 votes.

Banks won the first round of voting between Emmer, Banks, and Ferguson, with Emmer in second, and Ferguson in third. This led to a runoff election between Emmer and Banks.

Emmer announced his bid for House Republican Whip after analysts projected that Republicans would retake the House.

He said during a press conference call last week that he would utilize relationships across the House Republican Conference:

The whip’s job is really knowing the country and being able to work with members to say, look, we want you to be successful. How can we help you to be successful while at the same time allowing us to do the things that we need to do for the American people so that we can put this thing on a better track? It’s not rocket science. It’s about relationships and about making sure that people are empowered to do what they know is right and I think we’re going to have a great experience with it.

Emmer predicted that House Republicans would only increase their majority after making their case to the American people.

“I think we’re going to do a good job of governing that and making our case to the American people and I think we’ll expand it in two years,” he said.

When pressed by reporters about how the somewhat underwhelming performance by House Republicans would impact his bid for whip, he said that it is still a historical moment.

Emmer said:

We are going to deliver a majority, a new Republican majority. It’s the third time that we have flipped the house in 50 some, no 68 years. That’s a big deal. Majorities are not given, majorities are earned. And, I made it very clear to our members for the last couple of years that you don’t be measuring the drapes because you haven’t won anything yet. And this is not like any midterm you’ve ever seen. Because the numbers are not the same. We are playing in blue country … We flipped the house for just the third time since 1954.

He added, “I’m extremely proud of that accomplishment. And you know what? I’m happy to make my case to my colleagues for whip.”

Sean Moran is a congressional reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.

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