File photo taken on July 15, 2024 shows Mike Johnson speaking during the Republican National Convention 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the United States. Mike Johnson on Jan. 3, 2025 won re-election in the first round of voting for the U.S. House speaker in a slim Republican majority. (Xinhua/Li Rui)
WASHINGTON, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Mike Johnson on Friday won re-election for the U.S. House speaker in a slim Republican majority, after swaying two out of the three members of his party who had joined Democrats to block his bid.
The final vote tally was 218 to 216, with all 215 Democrats voting for minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, and Republican Congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky voting for another candidate -- GOP Whip Tom Emmer.
Two other House Republicans -- Ralph Norman of South Carolina and Keith Self of Texas -- had voted for other candidates for speaker, and changed votes after last minute negotiation with Johnson.
The turbulent speaker election reflects the ongoing infighting within the Republican Party. Several conservative Republican lawmakers previously voiced opposition to Johnson's re-election. Even though President-elect Donald Trump has publicly endorsed him, it was not enough to prevent three votes of opposition in the initial results.
Massie, who followed through with his "no" vote, recently said that Johnson is not fit for the job of House speaker, and if he continues to hold the position, it will ultimately cause the Republican Party to lose its slim majority.
Massie had previously supported Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene's efforts to remove Johnson from the speaker's position, partly because he believed Johnson chose to cooperate with Democrats to remain speaker, despite lacking sufficient Republican votes to support him.
Johnson, 52, from Louisiana, was initially elected speaker of the House of Representatives as a result of Republican infighting.
On Oct. 3, 2023, former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a California Republican, was ousted due to opposition from the party's far-right conservatives, leaving the House in a state of paralysis. After three weeks of a leaderless period, Johnson was elected speaker on Oct. 25, 2023, in the fourth round of voting.
In the November 2024 U.S. House elections, the Republican Party managed to retain a majority, but it became even slimmer. Republicans currently hold 219 seats, while Democrats control 215 of the 435 seats. This means that if two Republican members were to defect, the GOP could lose its majority, complicating efforts to push through legislative agendas. ■