Harris defeated in race for GOP Study Committee

North Carolina Rep. Mark Walker was elected Thursday to lead an influential caucus of House conservatives, denying Maryland Rep. Andy Harris a shot at the job and the chance to help craft the party’s message. Walker, in his first term, was elected chairman of the Republican Study Committee on what several lawmakers described as a close vote. The group has worked since the 1970s to pull the House of Representatives to the right on fiscal and social issues. “We’re ready to jump in and work hard,” Walker said minutes after the vote was tallied. Harris, in this third term, had the backing of more conservative members of the Republican conference, including the Freedom Caucus, of which he is a member. He ran a campaign centered on the idea of the bridging the divides within the committee. “It’s the will of the body,” Harris said after the vote. “I obviously wish it had been a different outcome.”