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Mike Johnson is facing a new challenge as the smallest House Majority in history. Despite maintaining control of the House, the Republican speaker will have a smaller majority to work with. This comes at a crucial time when President-elect Donald J. Trump will rely on his support to push through key agenda items.
Written by Catie Edmondson
Reporting live from the government building
The margin of victory for Speaker Mike Johnson has decreased.
The last House race was decided on Tuesday evening when Representative John Duarte, a new Republican, acknowledged defeat to Democrat Adam Gray. This solidified the Republicans’ majority to 220-215, which is only slightly larger than their current majority of 220-213.
In January, the margins will decrease even more as Representatives Elise Stefanik of New York and Mike Waltz of Florida step down to join the Trump administration. Former Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida has also informed that he will not be coming back.
After the special election, Republicans will have a slim majority of 217-215 in the House, which is one of the smallest margins in history. If all Democrats are present and united against a proposal, Mr. Johnson will need every Republican vote to pass the bill until the vacant seats are filled. Even after the vacancies are filled, no more than three Republicans can oppose a measure without it failing to pass.
On Wednesday, Mr. Johnson appeared unconcerned about the idea and reassured reporters on Capitol Hill that his team is experienced in working with a narrow majority, as it is something they are used to.
He continued by saying that they do not have any extra resources to share. However, all the members are aware of this situation. They discussed this today and regularly remind each other that they need to work together and cooperate towards the same goal.
He didn’t talk about how he achieved success in working with Democrats to pass important bills that his own party didn’t support due to a small majority. However, this strategy may not work in the future with President-elect Donald J. Trump in power.
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