House speaker contender Steve Scalise reportedly said he was ‘David Duke without the baggage’

Republican, who some say could replace Kevin McCarthy, has had reported associations with ex-Ku Klux Klan grand wizard

Steve Scalise, the Louisiana Republican who some in his party reportedly want to elect as speaker of the US House of Representatives after the stunning and historic removal of Kevin McCarthy, was once reported to have called himself David Duke without the baggage".

Duke, 73, is a former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, an avowed white supremacist who has run for Louisiana governor, the US House and Senate and for president and who in 2003 was sentenced to 15 months in jail for mail and tax fraud.

This article was amended on 3 October 2023 to correct who Matt Gaetz said might be good choices for House Speaker.