Republican Jim Jordan has lost the first vote in his bid to become Speaker of the US House of Representatives after stronger than expected opposition from members of his own party.
Despite intense lobbying, 20 Republicans refused to vote for the right-wing Ohio congressman.
Trump aides abandoned plans for another vote by Wednesday morning.
The lower house of Congress has been without a speaker since Kevin McCarthy was ousted in a right-wing insurrection two weeks ago.
Without the leader, the House is unable to pass any bills or approve White House requests for emergency aid. This also includes potential aid for Israel amid its war with Hamas.
Mr Jordan received 200 votes in the first ballot on Tuesday, but needs 217 votes to secure the post of speaker.
The Democratic candidate, Hakeem Jeffries of New York, earned more votes – 212 – than Mr. Jordan, but Democrats are the minority party in the House, so it was not enough.
Mr. Jordan vowed to “keep working” and expressed confidence that he would ultimately emerge victorious.
“We are making progress. I feel good about it,” he told reporters. “We’ll keep going.”
Mr. Jordan can only afford to lose four Republican votes in the House, which his party controls by 221-212.
The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee initially said a second vote was planned for Tuesday, but later said it would take place on Wednesday at 11:00 (15:00 GMT).
Republicans who declined to choose Mr. Jordan voted for former Chairman Kevin McCarthy, who was ousted on October 3, or chose other candidates.
Three also voted for New York Congressman Lee Zeldin, who retired from the House in January this year.
A faction of New York Republicans who voted against Mr. Jordan cited his opposition to benefits for survivors of the 9/11 attacks, among other political issues.
But Elise Stefanik, another Republican from New York, called Mr Jordan “a patriot, America First warrior who wins the toughest battles”.
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Mr Jordan has a record of feuding with members of his own party. He is a founding member of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, a group once labeled “legislative terrorists” by former Republican Speaker John Boehner.
Mr. Jordan held meetings after Tuesday’s vote with some Republicans who voted against him.
However, many suggested he would not yield, and some indicated that the number of votes against Mr. Jordan might actually increase.
Colorado Republican Ken Buck said the Ohio congressman still has not accepted former President Donald Trump’s loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 election.
Another Republican who voted against Mr. Jordan, Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida, said he did not feel “at all pressure” to change his vote.
He said any attempt to “intimidate” him would end any negotiations. “If that’s the case, that’s where you’ll lose me,” he said.
One of the anti-Jordan supporters, Lori Chavez-Deremer of Oregon, suggested giving additional powers to interim Speaker Patrick McHenry, a North Carolina Republican, to allow the House to function during the impasse.
Byron Donalds, a Florida Republican who supports Mr Jordan, told the BBC he was surprised by how many people voted against him.
Taking advantage of Republican dysfunction, Democrats are portraying Mr. Jordan as an extremist.
Pete Aguilar of California described him as “an outspoken denier of elections.”
California Democrat Nancy Pelosi – a two-time former speaker – told reporters that Mr Jordan had clearly underestimated the resistance to her.
Republicans were taking lessons on “math and how to count,” he told reporters.
At a news conference, Mr. Jeffries, the Democratic minority leader, offered to work with Republicans to find a president who would be a good fit for both parties.
“Informal talks have been going on for the last few days,” he said.
“There’s a possibility that this could accelerate now that Jim Jordan apparently doesn’t have the votes for speaker.”
If support for Mr. Jordan wanes, the next likely speaker candidate would be Tom Emmer of Minnesota, the third-highest-ranking Republican in the House.
The last speaker, Mr McCarthy, needed 15 rounds of voting over four days in January to secure victory.
Sharp opposition to Ukraine war funding among Republican hard-liners, including Mr. Jordan himself, contributed to the unprecedented voter turnout that led to Mr. McCarthy’s ouster this month.
The post of Speaker is second only to the Vice President for the post of President.