House Republicans are heading into a grim new chapter. When the 120th Congress convenes in January, the party will hold fewer House seats than at any point in the past 30 years.

Republicans selected Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio on Tuesday to serve as minority leader. That elevation completes his journey from tea party insurgent and House Freedom Caucus cofounder to a leading figure in the Republican establishment.

Quite a transformation, but not necessarily a promising one for the organization Jordan helped create. His rise further erodes whatever relevance the Freedom Caucus retained after years of diminishing influence.

The caucus was built around obstruction. Its members were most effective when Republicans held narrow majorities and the group could withhold enough votes to stall legislation, defeat it outright, or force Republican leaders to seek Democratic support.

The caucus routinely issued demands that Republican leaders considered unworkable. Blocking an outcome deemed insufficiently conservative counted as victory, even when the group offered nothing constructive to replace it.

That formula made more sense when a few votes could determine whether legislation survived. It looks considerably less useful in a Democratic majority House where the diminished Republican conference, and especially its most combative faction, will have little legislative leverage.

Politico reported Thursday that Jordan’s promotion and the Republican midterm losses have prompted some soul searching inside the caucus. Members are considering the purpose of a group created to pressure Republican leaders now that one of its founders leads the conference.

Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana said “our principles are the same” while suggesting that the caucus would emphasize “strategic alignment to protect the gains that we have indeed made over the last few years.” Rep. Marlin Stutzman of Indiana floated a different direction.

Stutzman said the group could adopt a “think tank model where we’re pulling good information together … to really inform the rest of the conference.” For an organization once known for blowing up leadership priorities, becoming a research shop would be quite the comedown.

When the Freedom Caucus emerged during the Obama administration, its members positioned themselves to the right of a Republican Party already proud of its conservative identity. John Boehner of Ohio, who was speaker at the time, still expected Republican lawmakers to govern responsibly.

The caucus preferred disruption. Jordan became, in Boehner’s words, a “legislative terrorist,” while Boehner’s attempts to keep the federal government operating and avoid breaching the debt ceiling were treated with suspicion and hostility.

Boehner’s 2015 resignation became a major triumph for the Freedom Caucus, which then had about 40 members. The result appeared to confirm that its aggressive approach could shape the Republican conference and punish leaders who refused its demands.

That swagger did not survive Donald Trump’s growing control over the party. Although the caucus entered Trump’s first term with ambitious plans and helped derail an early attempt to repeal Obamacare, its power faded as Trump’s influence expanded.

By the beginning of Trump’s second term, the Freedom Caucus looked increasingly like an extension of his MAGA brand. Pressure on House Speaker Mike Johnson could collapse after calls from the president, with initial holdouts repeatedly surrendering their opposition and supplying votes for little in return.

As MS NOW’s Steve Benen wrote, “the attack dogs have become obedient lapdogs, whose barks are worse than their bites.” Last week’s midterm results only deepened the caucus’s troubles, as candidates it supported lost primary races and several prominent members departed to seek other offices or lost reelection bids.

The remaining members now face a rump minority in which their votes will make little difference. Legislative bargaining with Democrats and passing laws are both outside Jordan’s usual approach, while rebelling against him could prove counterproductive for a Republican conference holding so few seats.

The caucus could try to reinvent itself as a MAGA Caucus and carry Trump’s political torch after he leaves office. It could also seek new foils if more moderate Republicans emerge during the party’s years outside the House majority.

For now, however, the Freedom Caucus is left searching for a reason to exist after its own cofounder became the leader it would ordinarily pressure. Its members remain free to obstruct, posture, and rebel, but almost nobody needs their votes anymore.