In a bold move, members of the House Freedom Caucus are demanding that Congress remain in session until a new speaker is elected, following the recent ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy. The House of Representatives enters its fourth week without a speaker, and tensions are rising among House Republicans.

After three failed votes on the floor, House Republicans voted on Friday to remove Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, as its nominee for speaker of the House. Jordan's ties to the House Freedom Caucus made this decision all the more significant.

To address the current situation and chart a path forward, House Republicans are scheduled to meet on Monday night. During this meeting, they will discuss the prospective nominees for speaker and gather more information. However, the earliest floor vote for the next nominee is not expected until Tuesday.

The House Freedom Caucus, however, is pressing House leadership to keep Republicans in Washington until a new speaker is elected. Their stance is clear: "no speaker, no recess." In a statement issued on Monday, the caucus emphasized that the work is far from over and criticized Republican leadership for not keeping Republicans in Washington over the weekend.

According to the House Freedom Caucus, the rejection of Jim Jordan, who they deem "arguably one of the most popular Republicans in the country," puts Republicans at "ground zero" and requires swift action. They believe that any delays in the process are intentional and unnecessary.

Furthermore, the House Freedom Caucus suggested that continuing to prolong the selection process only benefits the lobbyists and defenders of the status quo. They called upon the Speaker Pro Tempore and Republican leadership to keep Republicans in Washington for as long as necessary to elect a new Speaker of the House without any further delays.

The demands put forth by the House Freedom Caucus stem from a closed-door meeting held on Friday. After Jordan failed to garner enough support on the third ballot, 25 Republicans voted for someone other than him. Key switches in votes against Jordan came from Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., Marc Molinaro, R-N.Y., and Thomas Kean, R-N.J.

Currently, there are nine official candidates in line to replace McCarthy as House speaker. Among them are Republican Study Committee Chair Kevin Hern, R-Okla., and retired Marine Corps Gen. Jack Bergman, R-Mich., who officially entered the race after receiving calls from various factions within the GOP. Additionally, Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., has also announced his candidacy, while House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., and Reps. Mike Johnson, R-La., Austin Scott, R-Ga., Pete Sessions, R-Texas, Dan Meuser, R-Penn., and Gary Palmer, R-Ala., round out the list of contenders.

As the battle for the speaker position intensifies and tensions rise within the House Republican Conference, all eyes are on the upcoming decisions that will shape the leadership of Congress for the foreseeable future.