US Representative Tom Emmer abandoned his bid to lead the House of Representatives on Tuesday, just hours after his fellow Republicans nominated him, continuing the party infighting that has paralysed Congress for more than three weeks, a Republican aide said.

Emmer, who serves as the No 3 Republican in the House, secured the nomination after five rounds of voting but appeared to be at least 20 votes short of the 217 he would need to win the speaker's gavel, lawmakers said.

He abruptly left an afternoon meeting to press his case and walked past reporters and out of the building without answering questions.

The party's fourth pick for the job found himself in the same precarious spot that doomed the previous three candidates: seeking to win over a small group of holdouts from his own party that would have the power to doom his prospects.

"I hope we can find a different choice," said Jim Banks, one of the members who stated he would oppose Emmer in a floor vote. "Tom Emmer's not a conservative."

Emmer, 62, has a more moderate record than many other House Republicans. Unlike many in his party, he voted to certify Democratic President Joe Biden's 2020 victory over Republican Donald Trump following the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters.

Trump said it would a "tragic mistake" to support the Minnesota lawmaker's speaker bid. "He is totally out of touch with Republican voters," he wrote on social media.

Trump early this month had backed party hardliner Representative Jim Jordan's bid for the speakership, but Republicans gave up on his attempt last week after Jordan lost three floor votes.

Republicans have already rejected two prior speaker nominees, leaving the chamber leaderless since a small group of insurgents ousted Kevin McCarthy from the job on October 3. (Reuters)