Prom
Backed by
Mike Johnson is facing a new challenge as the Republican speaker with the smallest House majority in history. Despite retaining control of the House, Johnson will be overseeing a significantly reduced majority during a crucial time when President-elect Donald J. Trump will rely on his support to push through important agenda items.
Written by Catie Edmondson
Coverage from the government building
The margin of victory for Speaker Mike Johnson has decreased.
The last House race was decided on Tuesday night when Representative John Duarte, a new Republican, admitted defeat to Democrat Adam Gray. This solidified a 220-215 majority for Republicans, which is even smaller than their current 220-213 margin.
The margins will decrease even more in January, as Representatives Elise Stefanik of New York and Mike Waltz of Florida are leaving to work in the Trump administration. Additionally, former Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida has announced he will not be coming back.
The Republican party will have a slim majority of 217-215 in the House, which is one of the closest margins in history. With all Democrats working together against a proposal, Mr. Johnson cannot afford any of his party members to vote against it until the vacant seats are filled. Even after that, only three Republicans can go against the party’s decision without causing a bill to fail.
On Wednesday, Mr. Johnson seemed unconcerned about the situation and reassured reporters on Capitol Hill that working with a small majority is something they are familiar with and accustomed to.
He stated that they have no extra resources to give, but all members are aware of this. They discussed this during their meeting today and regularly emphasize the importance of teamwork and everyone working together towards the same goal.
He didn’t talk about how he achieved success in leading a small majority by working with Democrats to pass important bills that his own party didn’t support. This strategy may not work in the future with President-elect Donald J. Trump in office.
We are experiencing difficulties in accessing the content of the article.
To use all features of this website, make sure to activate
We appreciate your understanding as we confirm your access. If you are currently in Reader mode, please close it and sign in to your Times account, or consider subscribing to access all of The Times content.
We appreciate your understanding as we confirm access.
Are you currently a member? Please sign in.
Interested in receiving all of The Times content? Sign up for a
Prom
Index of the website
Navigation for finding information on