Washington – On Wednesday, Rep. Mike Johnson, a Republican hailing from Louisiana, emerged victorious in the race for the position of Speaker of the House, effectively putting an end to the tumultuous three weeks that followed the historic removal of Rep. Kevin McCarthy. With this victory, Johnson now stands as the second in line for the presidency.
Johnson secured his election with the unanimous support of all 220 Republican members present, surpassing the requisite 215 votes. On the other side of the aisle, all 209 Democrats present voted in favor of Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the leader of the House for the Democratic party.
“The people’s House is back in business,” Johnson declared to his colleagues just before taking the oath of office.
This marked the fourth time in three weeks that the Republican Party nominated a candidate for the role of Speaker, with Johnson stepping in to replace Rep. Tom Emmer, whose bid lasted a mere four hours the day before. Earlier in the selection process, two other candidates, Reps. Steve Scalise and Jim Jordan, withdrew their names from consideration after failing to unite the party behind their candidacies.
Rep. Johnson, relatively lesser-known in national politics, has been serving in Congress since 2017 and lacks experience in House leadership. However, he gained traction with his proposal to pass a series of government spending bills earlier in the week, drawing support from some of McCarthy’s critics. The widespread support he garnered among the Republican conference signified a collective desire to move past the divisive Speaker election and reopen the House for business.
Now, Rep. Johnson faces a formidable array of challenges, with the impending threat of a government shutdown taking precedence. The House confronts a critical deadline of November 17, when the current government funding is set to expire. Johnson’s plan, outlined among his colleagues earlier this week, hinted at the possibility of a stopgap measure to extend funding until January or April, aiming to pave the way for further spending and avoid a government shutdown.
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