Why Mike Johnson’s bid to remain House speaker could be difficult despite Trump’s support

WASHINGTON- Mike Johnson is once again fighting for his political life.

The Louisiana Republican’s grip on the House Speaker’s gavel and his position as second after the presidency will be tested Friday when a new Congress convenes and House Republicans consider whether to re-elect him at the post.

The challenge, as always, is that Johnson will need almost every Republican vote to win.

Johnson has a singular advantage in his favor: President-elect Donald Trump endorsed him for speaker in a social media post earlier this week. But it’s unclear whether Trump’s blessing will be enough to convince far-right Republicans, who are sometimes frustrated by Johnson’s leadership and inclined to demand concessions when their votes become essential.

Johnson, 52, became president in October 2023 almost by accident after Republicans struggled to replace Kevin McCarthy following the California Republican’s unprecedented removal from office. Several candidates tried and failed before Republicans chose Johnson, who is well-liked within the conference.

But Johnson’s handling of major funding battles, including delivering aid to Ukraine last spring and, more recently, a short-term spending bill, has transformed at least some allies into detractors.

With Republicans holding a narrow 220-215 majority in the House, it would take just two Republican lawmakers voting for other candidates to deny Johnson a majority for president, forcing more runoffs.

Here’s what you need to know about how the House elects a speaker:

No Room without a Speaker

The election of a president is the House’s first order of business after a new session of Congress begins at noon Eastern Time. This is a vote in which members participate even before taking the oath.

The House cannot organize itself until it has a Speaker, because that person effectively serves as the Speaker of the House and administrative head of the institution. The House can elect a new Speaker at any time if the person occupying that position dies, resigns, or is removed from office. The office of president has only been vacant 13 times in U.S. history, according to the nonpartisan newspaper Congressional Research Service. No speaker had ever been impeached until eight Republicans joined with Democrats to oust McCarthy.

Except in these cases, a president is normally elected at the start of a new Congress and serves in that position for the entire two-year session.

The Clerk of the House presides over the election of the Speaker. Lawmakers call their name of choice for the speaker from the room, a rare and lengthy roll call that heightens the drama in the room. MPs often liven up debates by shouting or standing up when they vote.

Who can be nominated?

Any name can be spoken from the upper floor of the house. Although it is traditional for the Speaker to be a member of the House, this is not required.

In recent years, Democratic President Biden, Trump and even a senator, Republican Rand Paul of Kentucky, have received votes for House speaker. None received a majority of votes. And usually, a party’s official candidate for president is the one who wins the gavel.

Republicans chose Johnson as their presidential candidate in a closed-door vote in November. A week later, Democrats unanimously chose Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) to remain their leader despite the party’s electoral defeats.

Legislators are not required to vote for their party’s nominee. And that’s why the process can quickly become complicated.

Let the voting begin

Once the House reaches quorum – that is, the minimum number of members are present to proceed – nominating speeches will be made on behalf of the candidates for Speaker. The clerk appoints legislators from each party as tellers to count the votes before roll call begins.

To become president, a candidate must obtain a majority of the votes of the members of the House present and voting.

Historically, the magic number was 218 out of the 435 members of the House. But many previous speakers, including McCarthy, have won with fewer votes because members sometimes vote “present” instead of calling out a name. Each legislator voting “present” reduces the overall score needed to reach a majority.

It remains to be seen whether Johnson will reach the majority to become president in the first round. If it fails, it is likely that the clerk will decide to initiate another roll call vote.

McCarthy went through 15 grueling ballots in four days before gaining enough support to become the 55th speaker in January 2023.

Passage of the hammer

Once a candidate speaker wins a majority of those present and voting, the clerk will announce the results of the election.

A bipartisan committee, usually composed of members from the chosen candidate’s home state, will escort the president-elect to the chair on the dais where the oath of office is administered. The oath is identical to that which new members will take once the speaker is chosen.

The outgoing speaker typically joins his or her successor in the speaker’s chair, where the gavel is passed in a nod to the peaceful transition of power from one party leader to another. But this time, since Johnson is already the speaker, it will likely be Jeffries who once again hands the gavel to Johnson.

Amiri writes for the Associated Press.