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Mike Johnson is facing a new challenge as the Republican speaker with the smallest House majority in history. Despite holding onto control of the House, he will have to manage 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 from the government building.
The margin of victory for Speaker Mike Johnson has decreased even further, making his majority even more tenuous.
The last House race was decided on Tuesday evening when Representative John Duarte, a first-term Republican from California, accepted defeat against Democrat Adam Gray. This solidified a Republican majority of 220-215, which is even narrower than their current majority of 220-213.
The margins will decrease more in January as Representatives Elise Stefanik from New York and Mike Waltz from Florida step down to work in the Trump administration. Additionally, former Representative Matt Gaetz from Florida has announced he will not be coming back.
The 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 unified against a proposal, Mr. Johnson cannot afford to lose any support from his party until the vacant seats are filled. Even after the vacancies are filled, only three Republicans can oppose a bill without it failing to pass.
On Wednesday, Mr. Johnson appeared unconcerned about the situation, stating to reporters on Capitol Hill that they are experienced in working with a small majority and it is something they are used to.
He mentioned that they don’t have any extra resources to offer, but all of their team members are aware of that. They discussed this today and regularly emphasize the importance of working together as a team towards the same goal.
He didn’t talk about how a lot of his success in leading a small majority in the past year came from working with Democrats to pass important laws that his own party wouldn’t support. This strategy may not work in the next Congress with President-elect Donald J. Trump in power.
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