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Let It Burn!
How GOP infighting over speaker fight could delay Trump certification
How GOP infighting over speaker fight could delay Trump certification
Fresh off a government spending deal that left many Republicans unhappy with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), lawmakers are returning to Capitol Hill on Jan. 3 to swear in new members
Fresh off a government spending deal that left many Republicans unhappy with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), lawmakers are returning to Capitol Hill on Jan. 3 to swear in new members and determine whether Johnson keeps his gavel — three days before the House meets to the certify President-elect Donald Trump’s Electoral College win.
However, discontent is circulating throughout the Republican conference, and any defection from Johnson supporters could result in a lengthy speakership battle and a possible delay in certifying their party leader’s ascent to the White House.
When the House returns to session on Jan. 3, the breakdown will be 219 Republicans and 215 Democrats when all new members are sworn in. If all 434 members vote, the majority needed to become speaker will be 218.
As all 215 Democrats are likely to vote for Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Johnson can only afford to lose one Republican vote — and he's already in danger, after Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) told reporters he would not support Johnson for speaker.
For many members, this speakership fight could feel like deja vu.
Former Speaker and California Republican Rep. Kevin McCarthy won the speaker’s gavel after losing 14 rounds of voting in 2023. McCarthy’s ouster in the fall later that year brought the House to a standstill for three weeks due to Republican infighting over who to select as their leader. The conference finally landed on Johnson, who many regard as the most conservative speaker in U.S. history.
Now, Johnson’s gavel is in peril — and so is the certification of Trump’s win over Vice President Kamala Harris.
