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The current Republican Speaker, Mike Johnson, is facing a challenge with having the smallest House majority in history. Despite maintaining control of the House, he will have to navigate an even smaller majority during a time when President-elect Donald J. Trump will rely on his support to push through important agenda items.
Written by Catie Edmondson
Reporting live from the seat of
The margin of victory for Speaker Mike Johnson has decreased even further.
The last House race was officially decided on Tuesday night when Representative John Duarte, a first-term Republican from California, admitted defeat to Democrat Adam Gray. This victory solidified a narrow 220-215 majority for the Republicans, which is even smaller than their current advantage of 220-213.
In January, the margins will decrease even more as Representatives Elise Stefanik from New York and Mike Waltz from Florida step down to join the Trump administration. Additionally, former Representative Matt Gaetz from Florida has announced that he will not be coming back.
The Republican party will have a slim majority of 217-215 in the House, which matches the smallest controlling margin in history. If all Democrats are present and united against a proposal, Mr. Johnson cannot afford any dissenting votes on the House floor until the vacancies are filled. Even after that, only up to three Republicans can vote against a bill without it failing.
On Wednesday, Mr. Johnson appeared unaffected by the idea and confidently stated to journalists on Capitol Hill that they are experienced in working with a narrow majority and it is something they are used to.
He stated that they do not have any extra resources to contribute, but all members are aware of this. They discussed the importance of teamwork and everyone working together towards the same goal.
He didn’t say that a big part of his success in managing a small majority in the past year was working with Democrats to pass important laws that his own party didn’t back. This may not be possible in the next Congress with President-elect Donald J. Trump in office.
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