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Mike Johnson is facing a new challenge as the Republican speaker, as he now has the smallest House majority in history. Despite maintaining control of the House, Johnson will have to lead with an even smaller majority while President-elect Donald J. Trump will rely on his support to push forward important agenda items.
Written by Catie Edmondson
Providing updates from the seat
The size of Speaker Mike Johnson’s majority has recently decreased.
The last House race was confirmed on Tuesday evening when Representative John Duarte from California, a new Republican member, admitted defeat to Democrat Adam Gray. This solidified a 220-215 Republican majority in the House, which is even narrower than their current majority of 220-213.
The margins will decrease even more in January when Representatives Elise Stefanik of New York and Mike Waltz of Florida step down to work in the Trump administration. Additionally, former Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida has announced that he will not be coming back.
After the special election, Republicans will have a slim majority of 217-215 in the House of Representatives, which is one of the closest margins in history. If all Democrats are present and united against a proposal, Mr. Johnson will need every Republican vote to pass it until the vacancies are filled. Even after the vacancies are filled, only three Republicans can vote against a bill without it failing.
On Wednesday, Mr. Johnson appeared unconcerned about the idea and reassured reporters on Capitol Hill that his team is experienced in working with a small majority and that it is something they are accustomed to.
He stated that they have no extra resources to spare, but all members are aware of this fact. They discussed the importance of working together as a team and moving forward in unity.
He didn’t talk about how he achieved success in handling a small majority over the past year by working with Democrats to pass important laws that his own party didn’t want to support. This strategy may not work for him in the future when President-elect Donald J. Trump is in power.
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