Mike Johnson, who played a key role in trying to overturn the 2020 election, is the House speaker
WASHINGTON — House Republicans elected Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., to serve as the next speaker of the House, breaking weeks of GOP infighting that left the lower chamber frozen.
After four nomination votes, GOP lawmakers rallied behind Johnson, who was the No. 5 ranking House Republican as the conference's vice chair. Flanked by an exuberant conference cheering his name on Tuesday, Johnson vowed he was "very confident" he could shore up the support needed to be elected speaker on the House floor.
"Democracy is messy sometimes, but it is our system. This conference that you see, this House Republican majority, is united," Johnson said Tuesday evening.
While the House was without a speaker, lawmakers could not take up crucial legislation, including spending measures to avoid a catastrophic government shutdown and aid to Israel as its war rages on with Hamas. Now, the House is tasked with getting back to work for Americans as it faces these challenges.
Catch up with USA TODAY's updates.
House Republicans try to display unity
Speaking on the Capitol steps after Johnson's election, House Republicans sought to display unity after three weeks of chaotic infighting.
Emmer called the speaker saga one of the "greatest experiences" in American history, though the House was frozen for weeks without a speaker.
Johnson, speaking to reporters for the first time as speaker said House Republicans have gone through "character building."– Ken Tran
It's official: Speaker of the House Mike Johnson
Mike Johnson is officially the 56th House speaker.
Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Ky., 85 years old and dean of the U.S. House, swore in Johnson to bipartisan applause from Republicans and Democrats.
– Ken Tran
Johnson in first remarks as House speaker, vows to restore faith in Congress
In his first remarks as House speaker, Johnson first praised ousted former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., for serving as speaker up until this point.
Johnson thanked the California Republican for the “leadership and friendship and selfless sacrifice,” McCarthy has made for the conference during his tenure.
The Louisiana Republican, who was a political dark horse just the day before ascending to the highest position in the lower chamber, promised to reach across the aisle despite his differences with House Democrats to address the country’s issues.
Johnson noted his rapid rise to the speakership, saying his wife could not book a flight to Washington fast enough to be in the chamber for his election.
“This happened kind of suddenly,” Johnson quipped.
Johnson, well aware of the chaos that has roiled the House over the past few weeks, largely focused on the institutional faith of the lower chamber compared to conservative policy priorities.
Johnson vowed, as the 56th House speaker, “to restore people’s faith in this House.”
House to vote later today on resolution condemning Hamas
WIth Johnson's election as speaker, the House is finally able to pass legislation once more.
The first order of business for the lower chamber will be passing a resolution later today condemning Hamas' attack on Israel and reiterating U.S. support for Israel.
– Ken Tran
Jeffries reiterates support for Ukraine and Israel in speech before introducing Johnson
In a speech before introducing Johnson as speaker, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., reiterated key Democratic priorities, promising House Democrats will “find bipartisan common ground whenever and wherever possible” and “put people over politics.”
Jeffries, to bipartisan applause from both sides of the aisle, echoed the U.S.' “ironclad” support and commitment to Israel, a key ally as it fights a war with Hamas.
“Hamas is not good for Israel, Hamas is not good for America, Hamas is not good for the free world, Hamas is not good for the Democratic aspirations of the Palestinian people,” Jeffries said.
But perhaps what received the most cheers from House Democrats was when the New York Democrat said “Joe Biden won the 2020 election,” taking a subtle dig at Johnson for his efforts to overturn former President Donald Trump’s loss.
– Ken Tran
Mike Johnson elected speaker, breaking stalemate in House
Johnson was elected speaker by a vote of 220-209, successfully rallying House Republicans behind him and breaking the stalemate in the chamber that has left the House in state of legislative paralysis for over three weeks.
After 22 days, four nominations and countless closed-door meetings, House Republicans successfully found their unity candidate who was able to get the near-unanimous support they needed to become speaker. Not a single GOP lawmaker voted against Johnson.
The Louisiana Republican now has a monumental task ahead of him: mending the deep divisions that has plagued the House Republican conference since it took control of the House in January. The past three weeks of bitter infighting and turmoil has revealed at times how unwieldy the conference can be.
Johnson, compared to the other party leaders in Jeffries, House Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. and Senate Minority Leader, R-Ky., is a political dark-horse. He will have to guide the fractious conference through several key legislative priorities which includes averting a government shutdown and passing a foreign aid package to key U.S. allies such as Israel and Ukraine.
– Ken Tran
House Dems laugh at vulnerable New York GOP delegation
As the GOP New York delegation votes for Johnson, a known bloc of vulnerable moderate Republicans representing districts President Joe Biden win in 2020, some House Democrats broke out into laughter when they cast their votes.
"Bye-bye!" one House Democrat said when Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., voted for Johnson.
– Ken Tran
'Happy wedding anniversary to my wife!'
Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., the first openly gay lawmaker from Minnesota, appeared to call out Johnson before casting her vote for Jeffries, exclaiming "Happy wedding anniversary to my wife!"
Johnson voted against codifying same-sex marriage in 2022.
– Ken Tran
GOP Rep. Ken Buck votes for Johnson
In a significant victory for Johnson as voting is underway, Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., voted for the Louisiana Republican.
Buck was a GOP holdout who blocked Jordan's speakership bid due to his refusal to publicly say Trump lost the 2020 election. Considering Johnson's major role in the efforts to overturn the election, Buck's vote signals the speaker fight is coming to a conclusion.
– Ken Tran
House begins speaker election
The House has begun voting on the next speaker with Johnson as the GOP nominee and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., as the Democratic nominee.
House Republicans are feeling brightly optimistic about Johnson’s chances. This will be a roll call vote which will take a while – each member must be called one-by-one to declare their vote.
– Ken Tran
Aguilar nominates Jeffries, goes after Johnson ahead of House speaker vote
Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., chair of the House Democratic Caucus and the No. 3 ranking House Democrat, nominated House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., for the speakership while also attacking Johnson, seeking to portray the Louisiana Republican as someone who will pass an “extreme litmus test.”
Aguilar went after Johnson for voting against codifying same-sex marriage and the certification of the 2020 election to boos and jeers from the Republican side of the aisle.
“This has been about one thing. This has been about who can appease Donald Trump,” Aguilar said to raucous applause from House Democrats. The California Democrat took aim at Johnson for his key role in efforts to overturn the 2020 election and noted he was a crucial "architect" behind Trump's attempts to revert his loss.
"Damn right!" some House Republicans said after Aguilar lambasted Johnson for his stance on the 2020 election.
– Ken Tran
Stefanik nominates Johnson to resounding applause from House Republicans
Rep. Elise Stefanik, the No. 4 ranking House Republican as the conference’s chair, nominated Johnson on the House floor to a resounding applause and standing ovation from nearly the whole GOP conference and cheers of Johnson’s name – a display of unity that has become unfamiliar over the past three weeks.
“Today is the day that House Republicans will humbly look at our hearts and elect Mike Johnson as the speaker of the people’s House,” Stefanik said, praising Johnson’s tenure in Congress. “Mike epitomizes what it means to be a servant leader.”
– Ken Tran
How many votes do you need to become speaker?
To become speaker, a candidate has to earn the majority of the votes in the House, and 429 members are present for today’s speaker election.
That means if all 429 members vote, the magic number to be elected speaker is 215.
Three Democrats are missing: Reps. Brendan Boyle, D-Pa., Lou Correa, D-Calif., and Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas.
Just one Republican, Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., is missing.
– Ken Tran
Johnson taking photos with GOP colleagues
Ahead of the speaker election where House Republicans are passionately optimistic about Johnson's chances of securing the gavel, there is a line of GOP lawmakers waiting to take photos with the Louisiana Republican.
– Ken Tran
Johnson making the rounds ahead of House speaker vote
Johnson has entered the House chamber and is making the rounds around the floor, greeting and embracing colleagues including Reps. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., and Roger Williams, R-Texas, two speaker candidates he beat out to secure the nomination.
– Ken Tran
What would Mike Johnson do as speaker? 7 priorities
Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., in a letter to colleagues over the weekend detailed what he’d focus on if elected House speaker.
He targeted seven priorities:
Restore trust
Advance a comprehensive policy agenda
Promote individual members
Engage members
Effectively message
Build and utilize external coalitions
Develop and grow the GOP majority
“The complex role of Speaker at this time requires a team player and a bridge-builder with endless energy and a unique mix of skills and experiences,” he said in the letter. “My extensive background in law, policy, strategic analysis, messaging, managing, networking, and building coalitions happens to have served as uncommon preparation for the extraordinary demands of this day.”
– Candy Woodall
House is in session ahead of speaker election
The House has gaveled into session ahead of the speaker election.
First up will be a quorom roll call vote to determine attendance, followed by nominating speeches.
Then, the speaker election will be held. House Republicans are feeling confident Johnson will clinch the speakership in the first ballot.
– Ken Tran
Johnson presents agenda for House Republicans on avoiding government shutdown, supporting Israel
In a letter to his fellow GOP colleagues, Johnson offered an "ambitious" timeline for the process to avert a government shutdown. In his proposal, Johnson would put forward a short-term stopgap bill, called a continuing resolution, to delay a shutdown and buy lawmakers more time to hash out the long-term spending bills.
The continuing resolution would fund the government until either January 15 or April 15, depending on "what can obtain conference consensus."
House Republicans would pass the 12 appropriation bills needed to avoid a shutdown over the course of the next few months under Johnson's plan.
The House would also pass a resolution from House Foreign Affairs Committee chair Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, condemning Hamas' attack on Israel as soon as possible. Among other priorities outlined in the letter, Johnson included the farm bill, crucial agriculture legislation passed roughly every five years.
And at the bottom of the letter, one of the last priorities in Johnson's agenda reads: "EXPAND OUR MAJORITY."
– Ken Tran
Why did Emmer drop out of the speaker race?
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., dropped out of the House speaker race on Tuesday night, just hours after being selected as the Republican nominee.
The move reflects the bitter intraparty infighting that has plagued House Republicans. Moments after becoming the nominee, Emmer faced fierce opposition from conservatives and even former President Donald Trump.
– Ken Tran and Marina Pitofsky
House Democrats slam Johnson as a ‘top election denier,' prepare attacks against the speaker-designee
House Democrats are already going after Johnson ahead of the speaker election later today. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called Johnson a “top election denier,” over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Jeffries also noted how House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., the speaker-nominee before Johnson, was forced to withdraw in part because of former President Donald Trump’s attacks against the Minnesota Republican over his vote to certify the 2020 election.
“The twice-impeached former president ordered House Republicans to stop Tom Emmer and elevate a top election denier,” Jeffries said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “Is anyone surprised that they complied?”
House Democratic Caucus chair Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., will nominate Jeffries for the speaker election at noon and told USA TODAY Democrats will have more to say about Johnson on the House floor.
– Ken Tran
When will the House vote on a speaker?
The House will hold a speaker election at noon Wednesday.
Republicans are expected to nominate Johnson, while Democrats are expected to nominate House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.
– Ken Tran
Did Johnson vote to certify the 2020 election?
No, Johnson voted to overturn the results of the 2020 race for the White House. He also rallied Republican lawmakers around former President Donald Trump's legal effort to target the results of the election.
A reporter asked Johnson about his efforts on Tuesday night, and Republican lawmakers booed the journalist.
Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., was seen yelling "shut up."
– Marina Pitofsky
How did the House speaker race get here?
The chaotic search for a new House speaker began after a handful of hardline Republican lawmakers ousted former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., earlier this month.
House Democrats refused to vote to save McCarthy and have since refused to lend their support to Republican speaker candidates, including Reps. Steve Scalise, R-La.; Jim Jordan, R-Ohio and Tom Emmer, R-La.
Jordan faced multiple rounds of voting on the House floor before withdrawing from the race.
Republican lawmakers briefly considered empowering Republican Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., who is already serving as an interim speaker, but they ultimately rejected the plan.
Late Wednesday night, GOP lawmakers nominated Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La. as their latest speaker pick.– Marina Pitofsky
A boost for Johnson's speaker prospects? Thomas Massie announces support
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., one of the few members who voted "present" Tuesday evening during Johnson's nomination vote announced on X, formerly Twitter, that he would be supporting the Louisiana Republican on the floor Wednesday in another boost for Johnson's strong showing of support ahead of the speaker election.
"After speaking with him this morning, I’m committed to vote for Mike Johnson when we go to the floor of the House," Massie said. "He has my full support."
– Ken Tran
Who is the speaker of the House?
Rep Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., is currently serving as the speaker pro tempore after a handful of Republicans ousted former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif earlier this month.
But McHenry's interim role doesn't carry the powers that an official speaker of the House holds. That means the House can't consider legislation until they elect another speaker, and they can't work on crucial priorities such as funding packages to avoid a government shutdown.
? Marina Pitofsky
Who is Mike Johnson?
Louisiana Republican Rep. Mike Johnson, a deputy whip and constitutional lawyer known for his fiery exchanges on the House Judiciary Committee, is the fourth nominee chosen by his GOP peers to serve as speaker.
The vice chair of the House Republican Conference faces steep odds to get the 217 votes needed to win the gavel, especially considering he already has more than 40 votes against him. Those holdouts mostly favor ousted former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
Johnson, 51, was a state representative for two years before being elected to Congress in 2016 and quickly rising in the ranks. In addition to the Judiciary committee, Johnson serves on the House Armed Services Committee and previously served a term as chairman of the Republican Study Committee.
Johnson earned a bachelor’s degree and law degree from Louisiana State University, and he and his wife of 24 years, Kelly Johnson, have four children.
As speaker he would “chart a new path,” he told colleagues in a letter last weekend.
Johnson said the country is facing “one of the most fateful moments” in its history, citing the attack on Israel, emboldened foreign adversaries, high national debt, a southern border that is “overrun” and more.
“I have a clear vision and plan for how to lead us through these unprecedented challenges,” he said.
– Candy Woodall
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mike Johnson crowned House speaker after weeks of GOP infighting
