WASHINGTON-
The new United States Congress opened with an important task at hand: the election of the speaker of the House of Representatives.
Newly elected lawmakers are in place at the U.S. Capitol, but incumbent President Mike Johnson’s weak control of the gavel threatens not only their own survival but also President-elect Donald Trump’s ambitious agenda of tax cuts and deportations. massive protests as Republicans come to power in Washington.
Opposed by his own Republican colleagues, Johnson arrived with apparent confidence after working into the night to sway holdout hardliners. A failure by Johnson could upend Monday’s congressional certification of Trump’s 2024 election victory without a House speaker. Even Trump’s own endorsement, normally a safe bet for Republicans, was no guarantee that Johnson would remain in power.
“We don’t have time for drama,” Johnson said as he walked toward the Capitol.
The Louisiana Republican said electing the president “is not just about one person but about advancing the America First agenda.”
And he received a renewed gesture of support from Trump, who told the speaker: “Good luck.”
“A victory for Mike today will be a huge victory for the Republican Party,” Trump posted on social media.
What was once a ceremonial day when newly elected lawmakers arrived to be sworn in, often accompanied by family, friends and children, has become a high-stakes vote for House Speaker. one of the most powerful elected officials in Washington. .
While the Senate can convene on its own and has already chosen party leaders (Sen. John Thune as Republican majority leader and Sen. Chuck Schumer as Democratic minority leader), the House must first elect its president, a role required by the Constitution, second in line of succession to the president.
Congress has been in this situation before, when it took Republicans nearly a week and 15 rounds of voting to elect Kevin McCarthy as president in 2023, a spectacle unseen in modern times. McCarthy was then abandoned by his party, a historic first, but he was also part of a long list of GOP speakers persecuted until their early departure.
The stakes are higher this year, as Trump prepares to return to the White House with the House and Senate under GOP control and promising to deliver big results on a 100-day agenda.
“He’s the one who can win now,” Trump said of Johnson at a New Year’s Eve party that drew other Republican leaders to his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.
Trump endorsed Johnson, but also said that “others are very good too,” a nod to the “Make America Great Again” allies in the president-elect’s orbit.
Johnson has been working diligently to avoid defeat and spent New Year’s Day at Mar-a-Lago as he positions himself alongside Trump. The speaker often presents himself as the “quarterback” who will execute the political plays called by the “coach,” the president-elect.
“We have to stick together,” Johnson said on Fox Business Thursday night.
Johnson said he thinks he may lose just one detractor and hopes to win the presidency in the first round of voting. He said he has not yet asked Trump to make calls to holdouts. “My conversations with my colleagues are going very well.”
But Johnson also warned that without a speaker of the House there would be a “constitutional crisis” heading into Jan. 6, when Congress must by law count the electoral votes for president, weeks before Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20. .
“We have no time to waste and I think everyone recognizes that,” he said.
Johnson has one of the narrowest majorities in modern times, having lost seats in the November election. That leaves him reliant on the support of nearly all Republicans against Democratic opposition, although the typical majority of 218 needed could change with absentees and others voting only “present.”
Looking ahead to Friday I did not have all the necessary support.
Texas Republican Rep. Chip Roy is among the most notable holdouts, a stalwart member of the Freedom Caucus who criticized the Republican leadership’s handling of the year-end spending bill for failing to cut spending and failing to deliver. with the rules of the House.
“Something MUST change,” Roy posted on social media. He said he remains undecided about the president’s vote for Johnson, but added that “my desire is to give him grace” in the hope that they can deliver on the GOP agenda.
A resounding and almost certain no is from Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., but other far-right Republicans, including some who helped unseat McCarthy, have kept their opinions closed.
“There’s a lot of discontent,” said Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., as lawmakers left for the Christmas break.
What is unclear is what other concessions Johnson can make to win support. Two years ago, McCarthy handed out major favors that only appeared to weaken his grip on power.
Johnson has already brought back one of those changes, with a new House rule pushed by centrist conservatives that would require at least nine members of the majority party on any resolution to oust the president, raising the threshold that McCarthy had lowered to just one.
“I think the holdouts are going to have to realize that, listen, Trump is always right,” Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, said as he left the speaker’s office Thursday night. “Just know that Trump is right all the time, that will help you make a very simple decision.”
In many ways, Johnson has no choice but to endure the political hazing of his colleagues, as they remind him who has influence in their unequal relationship. He was a last-minute pick for the position, rising from the backbench once other leaders failed after McCarthy’s overthrow.
Democrats were expected to vote for party leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York.
Jeffries has said Democrats will not help save Johnson, as they did in the past with their votes when he faced a threat of impeachment.
The president’s election will dominate the opening of the new Congress, which also features a slate of historic members, as the Senate hopes to quickly begin hearings on Trump’s nominees for top administration and Cabinet posts.
In the Senate, two Black women, Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, will be sworn in, the first time in the nation’s history that two Black senators will serve at the same time.
Senator-elect Andy Kim of New Jersey is also making history as the first Korean-American to join the chamber.
In the House, Sarah McBride is the first openly transgender person in Congress.
And Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi, who recently suffered a fall abroad and underwent hip replacement surgery, will return to Washington, a reminder of the power she wielded the last time Democrats held the majority.
But the pageantry of the day may be tempered if the president’s election stretches over multiple rounds of voting.
“I hope we can vote for him on that first ballot and then move on to the people’s business,” said Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., who backs Johnson.
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., said, “A big part of that will depend on Donald Trump.”
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Associated Press writer Adriana Gómez Licón contributed to this report.
