The 2025 speaker of the United States House of Representatives election took place on January 3, 2025, on the opening day of the 119th United States Congress, two months after the 2024 elections for the United States House of Representatives. This was the 130th speaker of the House of Representatives election since the office was created in 1789.
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Needed to win: Majority of the votes cast 434 votes cast; 218 needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The incumbent speaker, Republican Mike Johnson of Louisiana, was re-elected on the first ballot, defeating Hakeem Jeffries with a slim 218–215 majority. Johnson, who had replaced Kevin McCarthy in October 2023 after McCarthy was removed from the position, was initially expected to lose on the first ballot, as several Republican congressmen had told major news outlets they had no intention to vote for him.[1] Ultimately, on the opening day of the 119th Congress, three Republicans—Thomas Massie, Ralph Norman, and Keith Self—voted against Johnson, while all Democrats voted for Jeffries, thus, Johnson had initially fallen short of the 218 vote majority. However, shortly before the vote was finalized by House clerk Kevin McCumber, Norman and Self switched their votes to Johnson, which gave him the majority to secure the speakership.[2]
Process and conventions
editThe speaker is the presiding officer of the U.S. House of Representatives. The House elects its speaker at the beginning of a new Congress (i.e. biennially, after Election Day) or when a speaker dies, resigns, or is removed from the position intra-term. Since 1839, the House has elected speakers by roll call vote.[3] Following a congressional election and the adjournment of the prior congress, there being no speaker, the House clerk summons, convenes, and calls the House to order. After prayer offered by the House chaplain, the clerk leads the representatives in the Pledge of Allegiance before ordering a roll call conducted by the reading clerk. The clerk and its officers then order and oversee the election of a speaker. During these processes, the clerk must "preserve order and decorum and decide all questions of order", which is subject to appeal to the body.[4]
Traditionally, each of the party caucuses and conferences selects a candidate for the speakership from among its senior leaders prior to the roll call. Representatives are not restricted to voting for the candidate nominated by their party but generally do, as the outcome of the election effectively determines which one is the majority party and consequently will organize the House.[5] Without a speaker, members-elect of the House cannot be sworn in.[a] The House is unable to conduct any business other than electing the speaker.[6][7] Because the rules of the House are adopted for each new Congress, the House will not have rules until the election is complete allowing the members to be sworn in and the House to adopt rules.[8]
Representatives that choose to vote for someone other than their party's nominated candidate usually vote for another member within the party or vote present, which entails abstention. Moreover, as the Constitution does not explicitly state that the speaker must be an incumbent member of the House, it is permissible for representatives to nominate and vote for someone who is not a member of the House at the time, and non-members have been nominated and received a few votes in various speaker elections over the past several years.[9] Nevertheless, every person elected speaker has been a member.[5] Upon winning election, the new speaker is immediately sworn in by the House dean, the chamber's longest-serving member.[10][11] The new speaker then administers the oath en masse to the rest of the members of the House.[12]
To be elected speaker, a candidate must receive a majority of votes cast, as opposed to a majority of the entire membership of the House.[13] There have only been a few instances during the past century where a person received a majority of the votes cast and thus won the election while failing to obtain a majority of the full membership.[14] This occurred most recently in 2023 when Kevin McCarthy was elected with 216 votes (as opposed to 218).[15] Such a variation in the number of votes necessary to win a given election might arise due to vacancies, absentees, or members being present but not voting. If no candidate wins a majority of the votes cast for a person by name, then the roll call is repeated until a speaker is elected.[16]
Republican nomination
editRepublicans retained their slim majority in the House of Representatives, despite losing a seat, during the 2024 United States House of Representatives elections.[17] With a two seat larger majority, in the January 2023 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election, a faction of the Republican majority, mostly represented by the Freedom Caucus, refused to support Republican speaker nominee Kevin McCarthy without concessions. McCarthy eventually was elected speaker, following four days of voting and 15 ballots, after agreeing to name hardline Republicans to the powerful United States House Committee on Rules and allow any member to force a vote to remove the Speaker through a motion to vacate the chair.[18] Despite these concessions, McCarthy was removed as Speaker by dissident Republicans and all Democrats on October 3, 2023, after he worked to pass a clean continuing resolution to avert a government shutdown.[19] Mike Johnson was elected speaker, after four ballots, on October 25, 2023. Some Republicans blocked the nominations of Steve Scalise and Tom Emmer as speaker, while more moderate Republicans blocked the nomination of Jim Jordan.[20] In May 2024, after Johnson passed military aid for Ukraine, some Republicans attempted to remove Johnson from the speakership. However, this attempt was blocked by a majority of both Democrats and Republicans.[21]
Republicans voted to nominate their speaker of the House candidate on Wednesday, November 13.[22] On November 12, Politico reported that members of the House Freedom Caucus planned to force an internal secret ballot vote on the speakership of Mike Johnson. Their opposition to Johnson was mostly meant as a way to protest against some proposed rule changes (due to be voted on by the Conference) which would revoke Conference assignments from Republicans who break party lines on procedural votes or introduce a motion to vacate.[23]
Before the vote, members of the Freedom Caucus and the Main Street Caucus, along with speaker Mike Johnson, reached an agreement: the proposed rule changes on Conference assignments would be withdrawn; in exchange, the holdouts pledged to support a reform of the motion to vacate, which would raise the threshold to introduce it from one member to nine members. After the deal was struck, Johnson was nominated by voice vote without opposition.[24]
Following Speaker Johnson's December 17 announcement of a continuing resolution to avert a government shutdown, which included funding opposed by many conservative Republicans, Republican representative Thomas Massie said he would vote against Johnson in the upcoming speakership election. Politico and Punchbowl News reported that privately several other Republicans were "uncommitted" to supporting Johnson.[25][26] Later, Republican senators Rand Paul and Mike Lee, as well as Republican representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, publicly announced that they are open to supporting Elon Musk to be the next Speaker of the House.[27][28] On December 20, Freedom Caucus chair Andy Harris said he was "undecided."[29] On December 30, 2024, President-elect Donald Trump endorsed Johnson through a post on Truth Social.[30][31] Despite the endorsement, multiple Republican representatives have publicly said they are uncommitted to voting for Johnson; including Victoria Spartz,[b] Andy Biggs, Tim Burchett, and Chip Roy.[33][34][35] Roy also said that "Johnson does not yet have the support to be speaker."[36][37]
Nominee
edit- Mike Johnson, incumbent speaker (2023–present) and representative from Louisiana's 4th congressional district (2017–present)[22]
Democratic nomination
editIncumbent House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries was re-elected as Leader of the House Democratic Caucus by acclamation without opposition on November 19, 2024.[38]
Nominee
edit- Hakeem Jeffries, House minority leader (2023–present) from New York's 8th congressional district (2013–present)[39]
Election of the speaker
editDemocratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar nominated Jeffries while House Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain nominated Johnson.[40]
All Democrats voted for Jeffries. Initially, Republican Representatives Thomas Massie voted for Tom Emmer, Ralph Norman voted for Jim Jordan, and Keith Self voted for Byron Donalds, while Republicans Andy Biggs, Michael Cloud, Andrew Clyde, Paul Gosar, Andy Harris, and Chip Roy (all of whom were undecided going into the vote) did not respond to the initial roll call vote. The clerk then called a second time the names of those who had not replied to the first call, and all six voted for Johnson.[41] Johnson's vote count therefore stood at 216, two short of the required majority. However, after meeting with Johnson off the floor and receiving a phone call by Trump, Norman and Self shifted to supporting Johnson before the final vote was declared.[42][43]
Before the vote had officially concluded, Stacey Plaskett, the delegate representing the U.S. Virgin Islands, posed a parliamentary inquiry as to why she and other delegates representing U.S. territories and the District of Columbia were not called upon to participate in the speakership election.[44] She then said the House and the nation has a territories and colonies problem.[45]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Mike Johnson* (LA 4) | 218 | 50.23 | |
| Democratic | Hakeem Jeffries (NY 8) | 215 | 49.54 | |
| Republican | Tom Emmer (MN 6) | 1[d] | 0.23 | |
| Total votes | 434[e] | 100 | ||
| Votes necessary | 218 | >50 | ||
Notes
edit- ^ The Twentieth Amendment states that all members' terms begin at noon on January 3. Until officially sworn-in, members are referred to as members-elect.
- ^ Despite being a member of the Republican Party, Spartz is not part of the House Republican Conference.[32]
- ^ Table shows first ballot vote tally after vote shifts; votes before shifts were: Mike Johnson – 216, Hakeem Jeffries – 215, Tom Emmer – 1, Byron Donalds – 1, and Jim Jordan – 1. (total votes: 434 / votes necessary: 218).
- ^ The single vote for Emmer was cast by Thomas Massie.
- ^ One seat, belonging to Florida's 1st congressional district, was vacant at the time of the election.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Mike Johnson faces Republican rebellion ahead of House Speaker vote in latest test of Trump's sway". MSN. January 1, 2025. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- ^ Brooks, Emily (January 3, 2025). "Mike Johnson clinches Speakership in stunning first ballot". MSN. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ Forte, David F. (October 19, 2010). "Essays on Article I: Speaker of the House". Heritage Guide to The Constitution. The Heritage Foundation. Archived from the original on August 22, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ "The First Day of a New Congress: A Guide to Proceedings on the House Floor, rev. Dec. 19, 2018" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. December 19, 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ a b Heitshusen, Valerie; Beth, Richard S. (January 4, 2019). "Speakers of the House: Elections, 1913–2019" (PDF). CRS Report for Congress. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Research Service. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 3, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ 2 U.S.C. § 25
- ^ Jalonick, Mary Clare (January 5, 2023). "US House has no members, no rules as speaker race drags on". Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 5, 2023. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ Forrest, Jack (January 4, 2023). "The lack of a new speaker has ground House business to a halt". CNN. Archived from the original on January 4, 2023. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ Grier, Peter (September 25, 2015). "John Boehner exit: Anyone can run for House speaker, even you". The Christian Science Monitor. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ "Election of the Speaker Overview". Laws.com. October 28, 2011. Archived from the original on August 27, 2019. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "Fathers/Deans of the House". United States House of Representatives. November 9, 2016. Archived from the original on January 12, 2019. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ "Oath of Office". US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on November 9, 2019. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
- ^ Gamio, Lazaro; Gómez, Martín González; Migliozzi, Blacki; Murphy, John-Michael; Shao, Elena; Wu, Ashley; Zhang, Christine (October 17, 2023). "Vote Count: Mike Johnson Elected House Speaker After Three-Week Vacancy". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ Drenon, Brandon (January 6, 2023). "The longest vote for US House Speaker lasted two months". BBC. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ Reilly, Caitlin; McPherson, Lindsey; Weiss, Laura (January 7, 2023). "McCarthy wins speaker election, finally". Roll Call. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ Yilek, Caitlin (January 3, 2025). "The 119th Congress begins today. Here's what to know for the 2025 session". CBS News. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ Bowman, Birdget; Wong, Scott (December 4, 2024). "Democrats flip final House seat of the 2024 elections, narrowing Republicans' majority". NBC News. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Zurcher, Anthony (January 7, 2023). "What has Kevin McCarthy given up, and at what price?". BBC News. Archived from the original on January 7, 2023. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ Edmondson, Catie; Broadwater, Luke (October 3, 2023). "House to Decide McCarthy's Future as Speaker". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 3, 2023. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
- ^ Shelton, Mike Hayes,Kaanita Iyer,Elise Hammond,Shania (October 25, 2023). "Live updates: Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana elected speaker of the House | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Blackburn, Elise Hammond,Tori B. Powell,Kaanita Iyer,Piper Hudspeth (May 8, 2024). "House kills motion to vacate Johnson from speakership | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b Beavers, Olivia; Carney, Jordain (November 9, 2024). "Conservatives weigh potential show of opposition against Johnson". Politico. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
- ^ Carney, Jordain (November 12, 2024). "Freedom Caucus backs off plan to push a challenger to Johnson". Politico. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
- ^ Brooks, Emily; Schnell, Michael (November 13, 2024). "House Republicans strike deal to make it harder to oust Speaker". The Hill. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
- ^ Bade, Rachael; Olivia, Beavers; Carney, Jordain (December 18, 2024). "Johnson weighs spending plan B as Elon Musk stokes opposition". Politico. Retrieved December 18, 2024.
- ^ Sherman, Jake; Bresnahan, John; Zanona, Melanie; Soellner, Mica (December 18, 2024). "Trump nukes Mike Johnson". Punchbowl News. Retrieved December 18, 2024.
- ^ Adragna, Anthony (December 19, 2024). "Rand Paul floats Musk for speaker". Politico. Retrieved December 24, 2024.
- ^ Stef W. Kight (December 19, 2024). "Rand Paul floats Elon Musk for House Speaker". Axios. Retrieved December 24, 2024.
- ^ Solender, Andrew (December 21, 2024). "Mike Johnson's GOP rebels want their own Nancy Pelosi". Axios. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
- ^ Sotomayor, Marianna; Kornfield, Maryl; Alfaro, Mariana (December 30, 2024). "Trump endorses Mike Johnson for reelection as House speaker ahead of perilous vote". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Haberman, Maggie; Swan, Jonathan (December 30, 2024). "Trump Endorses Mike Johnson to Continue as House Speaker". The New York Times. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
- ^ Beavers, Olivia (December 16, 2024). "GOP lawmaker boycotts meetings and panels, saying she doesn't 'need to be involved in circuses'". Politico. Retrieved December 16, 2024.
- ^ Solender, Andrew (December 30, 2024). "Mike Johnson holdouts persist after Trump endorsement". Axios. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
- ^ Goldsberry, Jenny (December 30, 2024). "Victoria Spartz not committed to vote Mike Johnson as speaker over Trump's agenda". The Washington Examiner. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
- ^ Morin, Rebecca (December 30, 2024). "Trump endorses Mike Johnson for House Speaker: Which Republican lawmakers are opposed?". USA Today. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
- ^ Brooks, Emily (December 31, 2024). "Chip Roy on Johnson: 'I don't believe he has the votes'". The Hill. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
- ^ Pecorin, Allison; Jones II, Arthur; Parkinson, John; Peller, Lauren (December 31, 2024). "Republicans raising questions about Johnson's reelection as House speaker". ABC News. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
- ^ Wu, Nicholas (November 19, 2024). "Hakeem Jeffries was reelected as House Democratic leader by acclamation on Tuesday morning". Politico. Retrieved November 19, 2024.
- ^ Mascaro, Lisa (November 19, 2024). "Hakeem Jeffries wins reelection as House Democratic leader despite party's losses". AP News. Retrieved November 19, 2024.
- ^ "Live updates: Johnson fails to secure enough votes on first Speakership ballot". The Hill. January 3, 2025. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ Beggin, Riley; Pitofsky, Marina; Kuchar, Savannah; Venugopal Ramaswamy, Swapna; Kochi, Sudiksha; Jansen, Bart (January 3, 2025). "Live Updates: Johnson wins the battle for House speaker as holdouts relent". USA Today. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ Bonner, Annemarie (January 3, 2025). "Rep. Stephanie Bice says Johnson won over holdouts by 'listening' to concerns". NBC News. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ Desjardins, Lisa; Midura, Kyle; Couzens, Ian (January 3, 2025). "Johnson retains speakership, faces narrow GOP majority to implement Trump's agenda". PBS News. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
- ^ Chao-Fong, Léonie; E Greve, Joan (January 3, 2025). "Mike Johnson re-elected as House speaker after brief Republican revolt – as it happened". The Guardian. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
- ^ "'We Must Do Something': Stacey Plaskett Slams House For Not Calling Delegate Votes For Speaker". YouTube. January 3, 2025. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
External links
edit
Media related to Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election, January 2025 at Wikimedia Commons
