Republican nominee Scalise ends bid to become House speaker

The Republican nominee to lead the US House of Representatives, Steve Scalise, announced he was dropping out on Thursday after failing to garner enough support to win the election, deepening the crisis surrounding the paralyzed lower chamber of Congress.

The Louisiana congressman narrowly won a secret internal Republican ballot on Wednesday to replace ousted speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Scalise announced his decision at a closed door meeting where he also said he will not support any else.

“I…