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Mike Johnson is facing a new challenge as the Republican speaker with the smallest House majority in history. Despite maintaining control of the House, he now has an even smaller majority to work with, just as President-elect Donald J. Trump will rely on his support to push forward key agenda items.
Written by Catie Edmondson
Reporting live from the seat of
The margin of Speaker Mike Johnson’s majority has decreased even further.
The last House race was officially decided on Tuesday night when Representative John Duarte of California, a new Republican lawmaker, accepted defeat to Adam Gray, a Democratic candidate. This solidified a narrow 220-215 majority for the Republicans, which is even smaller than their current majority of 220-213.
The margins will decrease even more in January when Representatives Elise Stefanik from New York and Mike Waltz from Florida leave their positions to work in the Trump administration. Additionally, former Representative Matt Gaetz from Florida has announced that he will not be coming back.
After the special elections, Republicans will have a slim majority of 217-215 in the House, which is one of the smallest margins in history. If all Democrats unite against a bill, Mr. Johnson will need every Republican present and voting in favor 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 situation and assured reporters that they are experienced in working with a small majority, which is something they are used to doing.
He emphasized that there is no extra resources available. However, everyone in the group is already aware of this. They discussed the importance of teamwork and unity, emphasizing the need for everyone to work together towards the same goal.
He achieved success in managing a small majority by working with Democrats to pass important bills that his own party did not support. However, this strategy may not be possible in the future with President-elect Donald J. Trump in power.
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