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New House Speaker Mike Johnson stands between two statues and in front of microphones

House Republicans have picked their next leader. Here’s what you need to know.

Contributors: Ben Jacobs, Andrew Prokop, and Nicole Narea

After Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was deposed as speaker on October 3, House Republicans spent weeks in turmoil trying to elect his replacement.

The contest pitted House Republicans’ relatively centrist members against MAGA hardliners, with each side having an effective veto power due to Republicans’ narrow majority in the House. Representatives including Jim Jordan (R-OH), Steve Scalise (R-LA), and Tom Emmer (R-MN) all won majority votes inside the conference to be nominated as the party’s choice, only to see their bids fall short.

Eventually, the GOP settled on Mike Johnson, a relatively unknown Louisiana Republican. Johnson, a fierce social conservative and close ally of Donald Trump, won unanimous GOP support on October 25. He inherits a fractious Republican caucus and a busy fall agenda for the House.

11 Total Updates Since
Oct 4, 2023, 10:40am EDT
  • October 29

    “Lord of the Flies”: New House Speaker Mike Johnson faces a chaotic opening era

    By Ben Jacobs

    New House Speaker Mike Johnson faces a long to-do list and a caucus with short patience for compromise.

  • October 25

    3 winners and 3 losers from the House speaker circus

    By Andrew Prokop

    Right-wing hardliners ultimately triumphed by making Rep. Mike Johnson speaker.

  • October 20

    The GOP speaker contest has entered its “who?” era

    By Andrew Prokop

    Jim Jordan lost. Now the party is searching for new speaker candidates.

  • October 19

    5 ways the House speaker drama could end

    By Andrew Prokop

    Will the "Never Jordan" bloc cave? Will there be a bipartisan deal? Or ... what?

  • October 18

    Jim Jordan’s radical speakership bid falls short on the House floor — again

    By Andrew Prokop

    But he’s going to keep trying to flip GOP holdouts.

  • October 13

    Now it’s Jim Jordan’s turn to struggle to become speaker

    By Andrew Prokop

    Jordan got the GOP nomination. But he’s a long way from the support he needs on the House floor.

  • October 12

    Steve Scalise quits speaker race after humiliating 24 hours

    By Andrew Prokop

    And Jim Jordan is waiting in the wings.

  • October 11

    How Congress stumbled on the worst combination of representative government

    By Ben Jacobs

    The US House is acting like a parliament. That’s not great for America — or for you.

  • October 11

    Republicans have nominated Steve Scalise for speaker. Now comes the hard part.

    By Andrew Prokop

    Scalise still has to win on the House floor, which will require near-unanimity among Republicans.

  • October 10

    9 questions about Kevin McCarthy’s downfall and House GOP chaos, answered

    By Nicole Narea and Andrew Prokop

    How McCarthy got into this mess, who’ll be speaker next, and more.

  • October 4

    Kevin McCarthy is out. Who might replace him as speaker?

    By Nicole Narea

    The House voted to remove McCarthy as speaker. The search for a successor is on — and could drag on for days.