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114-669: When the conference holds the majority of seats, it is usually led by the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives who is assisted on the floor by the House Majority Leader and the party's Chief Whip. When in the minority, it is led by the House Minority Leader, assisted by the Chief Whip. The conference has a chair who directs day-to-day operations and who is assisted by an elected vice chair and

228-615: A HazMat consultant. He also co-founded the Percy R. Johnson Burn Foundation, which aided burn victims and their families. The younger Johnson wanted to follow in his father's footsteps, but his parents encouraged him to take another course. Johnson is a graduate of Captain Shreve High School in Shreveport. In 1995, he earned a Bachelor of Science in business administration from Louisiana State University , becoming

342-549: A motion to vacate Johnson's speakership . Greene could have forced a vote on the motion immediately, but initially chose not to, saying that she merely intended to send Johnson "a warning". In April 2024, over two months after the Senate had passed a funding bill for Israel , Taiwan , and Ukraine , Johnson put forward a legislative package providing aid to the three countries in separate bills, each of which passed Congress with bipartisan support and large majorities and

456-730: A secretary . In the 118th Congress , the conference is led by Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana , assisted by Majority Leader Steve Scalise (also of Louisiana), and Majority Whip Tom Emmer . The current chair is Elise Stefanik of New York , who assumed the position after a vote of the House Republican Conference on May 14, 2021. Former chairs include Gerald Ford , John Boehner , Mike Pence , John B. Anderson , Dick Cheney , Jack Kemp , J. C. Watts , Deborah D. Pryce , Adam Putnam , Jeb Hensarling , Cathy McMorris Rodgers , Liz Cheney , and Kevin McCarthy . As

570-715: A "Convention of States" to overhaul the Constitution. He later held hearings on this proposal in Congress. On February 10, 2016, Johnson announced his candidacy for the 4th congressional district seat, which had been held for eight years by John Fleming . Fleming was running for the United States Senate seat vacated by David Vitter . Johnson won the election. In 2018, Johnson won a second House term, defeating Democratic nominee Ryan Trundle, 139,307 votes (64%) to 72,923 votes (34%). In 2020, Johnson won

684-468: A "despicable bigot of the highest order" for proposing the bill. Johnson replied that he "wished Delgado had taken the time to review his record and career before making 'such hateful, wildly inaccurate statements'". On May 19, 2015, the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee voted 10–2 to table the bill, effectively ending its chances to become law. Both Republicans and Democrats voted against

798-486: A 311–114 vote; Johnson voted against the expulsion, and called it "a regrettable day". On February 13, 2024, the House impeached Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas by a 214–213 vote. The impeachment resolution, championed by Johnson, had been already put up to a vote on February 6, but had failed due to a small Republican rebellion. During the more than three weeks it took for House Republicans to elect

912-476: A Know Nothing but was now largely identified with the Republicans. The southern Know Nothings supported first Humphrey Marshall of Kentucky, and then Henry M. Fuller of Pennsylvania. The voting went on for almost two months with no candidate able to secure a majority, until it was finally agreed to elect the speaker by plurality vote, and Banks was elected. The House found itself in a similar dilemma when

1026-539: A Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty-five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States ". The Oath or Affirmation Clause provides that "The ... Representatives before mentioned... and all executive and judicial Officers ... of the United States ... shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution". Pursuant to Article VI, the 1st United States Congress passed

1140-820: A Republican from Colorado, echoed this sentiment, saying Johnson had won the speakership "because he has the fewest enemies of anybody in the Republican Party". In May 2024, Politico wrote that Johnson had aligned himself with former President Trump "while not being treated like a golden retriever" and that he had "fortified his reputation in consequential ways. Substantively, Johnson is an authentic movement conservative" who has been "successful in isolating his critics". According to Politico , he has "proved deft in recent months at handling his members." House Republicans have praised him for keeping his word and avoiding "making promises he can't keep", while he has operated in good faith with Democrats and "stayed respectful of

1254-575: A bewildering variety of labels, including Whig, Republican , American ( Know Nothing ), and simply " Opposition ". By the time Congress actually met in December 1855, most of the northerners were concentrated together as Republicans, while most of the southerners and a few northerners used the American or Know Nothing label. Opponents of the Democrats held a majority in House, with the party makeup of

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1368-468: A clearly partisan cast, very different from the speakership of most Westminster-style legislatures, such as the speaker of the United Kingdom's House of Commons , which is meant to be scrupulously non-partisan. The speaker in the United States, by tradition , is the head of the majority party in the House of Representatives, outranking the majority leader. However, despite having the right to vote,

1482-503: A compromise candidate since the other Republicans in the leadership were more controversial. Hastert, who had been serving in the House since 1986, became the longest serving Republican speaker (1999-2007). Hastert led the campaign to elect Tom DeLay , with whom he developed a close and effective partnership, as House Majority Whip. The Republicans came out of the 2000 elections with a further reduced majority but made small gains in 2002 and 2004. The periods of 2001–2002 and 2003–2007 were

1596-687: A first-generation college graduate. In 1998, Johnson graduated from Louisiana State's Paul M. Hebert Law Center with a Juris Doctor degree. Johnson was a constitutional lawyer before entering politics. He was senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, now known as the Alliance Defending Freedom , a socially conservative legal advocacy group that subscribes to the legal theory of constitutionalism . In 2004, he defended Louisiana Amendment 1 , which defined marriage as between one man and one woman within

1710-494: A former Whig of unclear partisan loyalties, who was finally elected speaker on February 1, 1860. In December 1923, at the start of the 68th Congress , Republican Frederick H. Gillett needed nine ballots to win reelection. Progressive Republicans had refused to support Gillett in the first eight ballots. Only after winning concessions from Republican conference leaders (a seat on the House Rules Committee and

1824-645: A non-member Speaker would cause a significant breach of the constitutional separation of powers . Schaub, Ellis, and Dubinsky also argue that permitting a non-member to serve as Speaker would effectively exempt Speakers from the eligibility requirements of the House Qualifications Clause of Article I, Section II and from being bound by an oath of office under the Oath or Affirmation Clause of Article VI as opposed to House members. The House Qualifications Clause requires that "No person shall be

1938-426: A pledge Johnson made to conservative hardliners during his run for speaker and was welcomed by Donald Trump. According to CBS News, "the task of posting the footage is daunting and has no firm deadline for completion"; viewing the videos would require "five years of 24-hour-per-day viewing for any single person to watch from beginning to end." On December 1, the House expelled Republican congressman George Santos by

2052-429: A pledge that requested House rules changes would be considered) did they agree to support him. In 1997, several Republican congressional leaders tried to force Speaker Newt Gingrich to resign. However, Gingrich refused since that would have required a new election for speaker, which could have led to Democrats along with dissenting Republicans voting for Democrat Dick Gephardt (then minority leader) as speaker. After

2166-681: A requirement. As noted by the Congressional Research Service , non-members have, on multiple occasions since 1997, received votes in speaker elections . In 1787, while the proposed Constitution was being considered, Pennsylvania Congress of the Confederation Delegate Tench Coxe publicly wrote the following: The house of representatives is not, as the Senate, to have a president chosen for them from without their body, but are to elect their speaker from their own number . . . . Noting that

2280-414: A result of the 2022 elections , the party holds a narrow majority in the House of Representatives in the 118th Congress , which was reduced from 222 to 221 after the expulsion of Republican George Santos on December 1, 2023. It was reduced additionally upon the resignation of Kevin McCarthy on December 31, 2023. As of November 8, 2023, the conference leadership has been as follows: The conference chair

2394-402: A speaker is elected. Since 1839, the House has elected speakers by roll call vote . In practice, each party's caucus or conference selects a candidate for the speakership from among its senior leaders prior to the roll call. To be elected speaker, a candidate must receive a majority of votes from the members present and voting. If no candidate wins a majority, the roll call is repeated until

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2508-469: A speaker is elected. Representatives are free to vote for someone other than the candidate nominated by their party but generally do not, as the outcome of the election effectively demonstrates which party has the majority and consequently will organize the House. Representatives who choose to vote for someone other than their party's nominee usually vote for someone else in their party or vote " present ", in which case their vote does not count in tallying

2622-419: A speaker, they were unable to pass any appropriations legislation. Johnson announced he would support another continuing resolution to extend funding for some departments until January 19 and others until February 2. Conservatives opposed the measures, but were not ready to offer a motion to vacate. On January 7, 2024, congressional appropriators reached an agreement on the topline spending levels for 2024 that

2736-409: A speakership election with the opposite party's delegation participating. Finally, it was agreed to exclude both delegations from the election and a speaker was finally chosen on December 17. Another, more prolonged fight occurred in 1855 in the 34th United States Congress . The old Whig Party had collapsed but no single party had emerged to replace it. Candidates opposing the Democrats had run under

2850-452: A specified period of time." The list of the members with this duty (usually political allies of the speaker, or members from districts close to Washington and thus better able to hold pro forma sessions) is made public. The first speaker of the House, Frederick Muhlenberg of Pennsylvania , was elected to office on April 1, 1789, the day the House organized itself at the start of the 1st Congress . He served two non-consecutive terms in

2964-554: A third House term with 185,265 votes (60%) to Democratic nominee Kenny Houston's 78,157 votes (25%). In 2022, Johnson won reelection unopposed. Johnson was sworn into office as a member of Congress on January 3, 2017. He has served as a deputy whip for House Republicans, as a member of the Judiciary Committee, and as a member of the Armed Services Committee. From 2019 to 2021, Johnson chaired

3078-406: Is a list of Johnson's former committee assignments before becoming Speaker: After Kevin McCarthy was removed from the position of speaker of the House on October 3, 2023, Representative Matt Gaetz floated Johnson's name as a potential replacement. On October 13, Johnson said that he would not run in the upcoming speaker election to succeed McCarthy and endorsed colleague Jim Jordan ; on

3192-655: Is elected each Congress. The vice chair is next in rank after the House Republican Conference Chair. Like the chair, the vice chair is elected by a vote of all Republican House members before each Congress. Among other duties, the vice chair has a seat on both the Steering and Policy Committees . Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives The speaker of the United States House of Representatives , commonly known as

3306-507: Is needed. He said, "We'll be back in session immediately after the election" and that Congress would address "specific needs and requests based upon the actual damages" of the hurricane, which "takes a while to calculate". When Johnson became House speaker, he was the least experienced representative to fill the office in 140 years. Axios wrote that Johnson's "status as a relatively unknown figure outside Capitol Hill meant he had few enemies to derail his campaign." Representative Ken Buck ,

3420-493: Is the only speaker of the House who was later elected president of the United States. Toward the end of the 19th century, the office of speaker began to develop into a very powerful one. At the time, one of the most important sources of the speaker's power was his position as Chairman of the Committee on Rules , which, after the reorganization of the committee system in 1880, became one of the most powerful standing committees of

3534-517: Is the product of an unplanned pregnancy and that his parents were teenagers when he was born. They divorced after 23 years of marriage. In 1984, while serving with the Shreveport Fire Department, Pat Johnson was severely injured and disabled in a fire at a cold storage facility. A fellow firefighter, Captain Percy R. Johnson, was killed in that fire. Pat Johnson never returned to work as a firefighter, choosing instead to become

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3648-598: The 36th Congress met in December 1859. Although the Republicans held a plurality, the Republican candidate, John Sherman , was unacceptable to southern oppositionists due to his anti-slavery views, and once again the House was unable to elect a speaker. After Democrats allied with southern oppositionists to nearly elect the North Carolina oppositionist William N. H. Smith , Sherman finally withdrew in favor of compromise candidate William Pennington of New Jersey,

3762-519: The 56th speaker of the United States House of Representatives since October 25, 2023. A member of the Republican Party , he is in his fourth House term, having represented Louisiana's 4th congressional district since 2017. Johnson is a graduate of the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University . Before entering politics, he worked as an attorney in private practice and for

3876-670: The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a conservative Christian legal advocacy group. Johnson sat on the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention between 2004 and 2012. Johnson's political career began when he was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives in 2015; he served in that body until 2017. He was first elected to represent Louisiana's 4th congressional district in 2016. During his time in Congress, he contested

3990-578: The House Republican Conference from 2021 to 2023. On October 25, 2023, after Kevin McCarthy was ousted as speaker, Johnson was elected the 56th speaker of the House . In 2024, he helped pass a bill meant to provide Ukraine with $ 60 billion of U.S. military aid. Johnson was born in Shreveport, Louisiana , the oldest of four children to Jeanne Johnson and James Patrick "Pat" Johnson (who died in 2016). He has said that he

4104-590: The Louisiana Constitution , against legal challenges. In August 2010, Johnson was named the "founding dean" of the newly established Pressler School of Law at Louisiana College . The law school never opened, and Johnson resigned in August 2012. Joe Aguillard , accused by a university vice president of misappropriating money and lying to the board, blamed Johnson's resignation for the law school's failure. The college soon terminated Aguillard, as it

4218-623: The Louisiana House of Representatives was vacated in 2015 when Jeff R. Thompson was elected to a state district judgeship. Johnson ran to succeed him and was unopposed. In April 2015, Johnson proposed the Marriage and Conscience Act. It would have prevented the state from engaging in adverse treatment of any person or entity based upon their beliefs about marriage. Critics denounced the bill as an attempt to protect people who discriminate against same-sex married couples. Governor Bobby Jindal pledged to sign Johnson's bill into law if it passed

4332-790: The Oath Administration Act (that remains in effect) which provides that "...the oath or affirmation [required by the sixth article of the Constitution of the United States]… shall be administered ... to the Speaker". Like the U.S. Supreme Court 's ruling in NLRB v. Noel Canning (2014), Ellis and Dubinsky cite an 1819 letter written by James Madison to Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Judge Spencer Roane where Madison stated that "difficulties and differences of opinion [arising] in expounding terms [and] phrases ... used [in

4446-829: The Republican Study Committee . Johnson served as vice chair of the House Republican Conference from 2021 to 2023. He was supported by the House Freedom Caucus PAC and frequently attended House Freedom Caucus meetings without formally joining the Caucus. Johnson was among 147 Republicans who voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election results . Johnson has worked closely with the Christian groups Answers in Genesis , Louisiana Family Forum , Alliance Defending Freedom , and Focus on

4560-771: The Sergeant at Arms and the Clerk ) do not perform. Schaub and the CRS also note that the text of the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 assumes that the Speaker is a House member in requiring the Speaker's resignation upon succession to the Presidency due to the Ineligibility Clause of Article I, Section VI . The Ineligibility Clause provides that "No ... Representative shall, during

4674-500: The United States federal government shutdown of 1995 and 1996 , in which Clinton was largely seen to have prevailed. Gingrich's hold on the leadership was weakened significantly by that and several other controversies, and he faced a caucus revolt in 1997. After the Republicans lost House seats in 1998 (although retaining a majority) he did not stand for a third term as speaker. His successor, Dennis Hastert , had been chosen as

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4788-467: The Vesting Clause of Article I, Section I states that "All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives", political scientist Diana Schaub has argued, "Legislative powers cannot be lodged in the hands of a non-legislative person. To do so would violate the fundamental purpose of Article [I] of

4902-449: The War of 1812 , and various laws relating to Clay's " American System " economic plan. Furthermore, when no candidate received an Electoral College majority in the 1824 presidential election , causing the president to be elected by the House, Speaker Clay threw his support to John Quincy Adams instead of Andrew Jackson , thereby ensuring Adams' victory. Following Clay's retirement in 1825,

5016-479: The speaker of the House or House Speaker , is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives . The office was established in 1789 by Article I, Section II , of the U.S. Constitution . By custom and House rules, the speaker is the political and parliamentary leader of the House and is simultaneously its presiding officer, de facto leader of the body's majority party , and

5130-578: The 1998 midterm elections where the Republicans lost seats, Gingrich did not stand for re-election. The next two figures in the House Republican leadership hierarchy, Majority Leader Richard Armey and Majority Whip Tom DeLay chose not to run for the office. The chairman of the House Appropriations Committee , Bob Livingston , declared his bid for the speakership, which was unopposed, making him speaker-designate. It

5244-403: The 2000, 2002, and 2004 elections. The Democrats won a majority of seats in the 2006 midterm elections. On November 16, 2006, Nancy Pelosi , who was then minority leader, was selected as speaker-designate by House Democrats. When the 110th Congress convened on January 4, 2007, she was elected as the 52nd speaker by a vote of 233–202, becoming the first woman elected speaker of the House. Pelosi

5358-420: The 234 representatives being 83 Democrats, 108 Republicans, and 43 Know Nothings (primarily southern oppositionists). The Democratic minority nominated William Alexander Richardson of Illinois as speaker, but because of sectional distrust, the various oppositionists were unable to agree on a single candidate for speaker. The Republicans supported Nathaniel Prentice Banks of Massachusetts, who had been elected as

5472-526: The Bible, is very clear: that God is the one who raises up those in authority. He raised up each of you. All of us". On October 26, 2023, Johnson met with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia during the latter's state visit to the United States . Later that day, he also met with President Joe Biden for the first time as speaker before attending a bipartisan briefing held at the White House on

5586-534: The Constitution." Both Schaub and the CRS note that the Standing Rules and Orders of the House created by the 1st United States Congress provided that the Speaker would vote "In all cases of ballot by the [H]ouse", while former House Intelligence Committee General Counsel Michael Ellis and attorney Greg Dubinsky have argued that the Speaker must be a House member because the Speaker performs various legislative functions that other House officers (such as

5700-777: The Constitution]... might require a regular course of practice to liquidate [and] settle the meaning of some of them." In holding in NLRB v. Noel Canning that the Recess Appointments Clause of Article II, Section II does not authorize the President to make appointments while the Senate is in pro forma sessions , the Supreme Court cited Marbury v. Madison (1803) and McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) in concluding that "The longstanding 'practice of

5814-645: The Family . After the 2022 midterm elections , Representative Andy Biggs proposed Johnson as a possible compromise candidate for Speaker of the House instead of Republican Conference leader Kevin McCarthy , after members of the House Freedom Caucus opposed McCarthy's bid for the speakership. In 2023, Johnson became chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government . The following

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5928-458: The House of Representatives, although every speaker thus far has been, and as a member the speaker also represents their district and retains the right to vote. The speaker is second in the United States presidential line of succession , after the vice president and ahead of the president pro tempore of the Senate . The 56th and current Speaker of the House is Mike Johnson , a Republican from Louisiana . The House elects its speaker at

6042-432: The House on January 7, 2023, after the longest multi-ballot speaker election since 1859. McCarthy was eventually removed as speaker on October 3, 2023, after a further split in the Republican caucus, with five House Freedom Caucus members voting against McCarthy, which when combined with votes of Democrats, resulted in the ouster of McCarthy. This was the first time in the history of the House of Representatives in which

6156-494: The House on November 14 with the support of 209 Democrats and 127 Republicans. It passed the Senate on the next day and was signed by Biden. On November 17, Johnson announced that 44,000 hours of security footage from the January 6 United States Capitol attack , all of which had previously only been available upon request from criminal defendants and the media, would be released to the general public. The announcement came after

6270-524: The House passed a $ 459 billion " minibus " spending package containing six of the twelve appropriations bills. The bill funded the departments of Agriculture , Commerce , Justice , Energy , Interior , Veterans Affairs , Transportation , and Housing and Urban Development . It also provided appropriations for the EPA , the Army Corps of Engineers , and other military construction. The rightmost faction of

6384-473: The House, becoming the first woman to hold the position. President Bush acknowledged Pelosi as the first woman in that position in the opening of his 2007 State of the Union Address . John Boehner was elected speaker when the 112th Congress convened on January 5, 2011, and was re-elected twice, at the start of the 113th and 114th Congresses. On both of those occasions his remaining in office

6498-569: The House. Furthermore, several speakers became leading figures in their political parties; examples include Democrats Samuel J. Randall , John Griffin Carlisle , and Charles F. Crisp , and Republicans James G. Blaine , Thomas Brackett Reed , and Joseph Gurney Cannon . The power of the speaker was greatly augmented during the tenure of the Republican Thomas Brackett Reed (1889–1891, 1895–1899). "Czar Reed", as he

6612-442: The Republican conference harshly opposed the deal, arguing it contained no substantial conservative policy wins. On March 22, the House passed a second $ 741 billion minibus to fund the remaining departments; a majority of Republicans voted against the bill, but it passed thanks to Democratic support. The bill's passage, and the decision to rely on Democratic votes to get it through, led representative Marjorie Taylor Greene to file

6726-511: The Rules Committee, and determined which committee heard each bill. He vigorously used his powers to ensure that Republican proposals were passed by the House. In 1910, however, Democrats and several dissatisfied Republicans joined to strip Cannon of many of his powers, including the ability to name committee members and his chairmanship of the Rules Committee. Fifteen years later, Speaker Nicholas Longworth restored much, but not all, of

6840-415: The Speaker of the House was successfully removed. Following a multi-day four-ballot election, Mike Johnson was elected speaker on October 25, 2023. [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Historically, there have been several controversial elections to the speakership, such as the contest of 1839. In that case, even though the 26th United States Congress convened on December 2, the House could not begin

6954-584: The Time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the United States... and no Person holding any Office under the United States, shall be a Member of [the] House during his Continuance in Office." Along with political scientist Matthew J. Franck, Schaub, Ellis, and Dubinsky argue that permitting a Senator or an executive or judicial officer of the federal government to serve as

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7068-436: The United States House of Representatives with every Republican member in attendance voting for him. Johnson was also sworn in as speaker on the same day. He is the first speaker in U.S. history from Louisiana. Johnson had served the shortest tenure of any House member elected speaker, at six years and ten months, since John G. Carlisle in 1883. Delivering his first remarks as speaker, he said, "I believe that Scripture ,

7182-543: The administration's proposed funding requests for aid to Ukraine and Israel. On October 30, Johnson suggested rescinding IRS funding from the Inflation Reduction Act to provide Israel $ 14.3 billion in aid. In November, Johnson proposed a two-tiered stopgap bill that continued spending at around current levels. The bill was opposed by House conservatives and the Freedom Caucus , but passed

7296-554: The agenda of the majority party, often at the expense of the minority opposition. This can be seen, most of all, in the speakership of Democratic-Republican Henry Clay , who personally ensured the presidential victory of fellow Democratic-Republican John Quincy Adams . Democrat Sam Rayburn was a key player in the passing of New Deal legislation under the presidency of fellow Democrat Franklin Delano Roosevelt . Republican Joseph Gurney Cannon (under Theodore Roosevelt )

7410-479: The appointment is approved by the House. Separately, a speaker pro tempore is designated in the event the office of the speaker is declared vacant. Under the current Rules of the House, at the start of their term, the speaker is required to create a secret ordered list of members to temporarily serve as speaker of the House if the speakership became vacant and to provide the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives this list "as soon as practicable after"

7524-512: The authority to appoint a majority of the members of the Rules Committee. Meanwhile, the power of committee chairmen was curtailed, further increasing the relative influence of the speaker. Albert's successor, Democrat Tip O'Neill , was a prominent speaker because of his public opposition to the policies of President Ronald Reagan . O'Neill is the longest continuously serving speaker, from 1977 through 1987. He challenged Reagan on domestic programs and on defense expenditures. Republicans made O'Neill

7638-415: The beginning of a new Congress, biennially , after a general election , or when a speaker dies, resigns, or is removed from the position during a congressional term. At the start of a new Congress, those voting to elect the speaker are representatives-elect, as a speaker must be selected before members are sworn in to office; the House of Representatives cannot organize or take other legislative actions until

7752-617: The bill; other than Johnson, only Republican Ray Garofalo voted for it. In response, Jindal issued an executive order to enforce its intent. In 2016, Johnson was a strong proponent of a movement, outlined in Article V of the Constitution, to amend the United States Constitution at a national convention called for that purpose. He helped lead the Louisiana House in formally petitioning Congress to call

7866-405: The body's presiding officer in the speaker's absence, is separate from the speaker's designation of multiple members as speakers pro tempore for the purpose of allowing them to sign enrolled bills and joint resolutions . The House Rules state: "With the approval of the House, the Speaker may appoint a Member to act as Speaker pro tempore only to sign enrolled bills and joint resolutions for

7980-432: The chamber's longest-serving member. Additionally, it is customary for the outgoing speaker, or the minority leader, to hand the speaker's gavel to the new speaker, as a mark of the peaceful transition of power . While every speaker of the House has been a sitting House member, Article I, Section II, Clause 5, of the U.S. Constitution , concerning the choosing of a speaker, does not explicitly state House membership as

8094-423: The conservative "Old Guard" wing of the Republican Party, while his president—Theodore Roosevelt—was of the more progressive clique, and more than just marginalizing the Democrats, Cannon used his power to punish the dissidents in his party and obstruct the progressive wing of the Republican Party. Mike Johnson James Michael Johnson (born January 30, 1972) is an American lawyer and politician serving as

8208-536: The election "and whenever appropriate thereafter." The names are only revealed in the event of a vacancy (e.g., by the speaker's death, resignation, incapacitation, or removal from office). This "succession list" procedure was created in 2003, following the September 11 attacks , to promote continuity of government . Rule I, clause 8, of the House Rules states the member whose name appears first on

8322-520: The election of Representative Mike Johnson . This came after two weeks of negotiations between Republicans, including three failed votes for Speaker. In total, there have been 16 elections requiring multiple ballots to elect a speaker, with 13 before the American Civil War , one in 1923, and two in 2023. The Constitution does not spell out the political role of the speaker. As the office has developed historically, however, it has taken on

8436-658: The first ballot, necessitating an additional round of balloting for the first time since 1923. McCarthy ultimately prevailed when the remaining six anti-McCarthy holdouts voted " present " on the 15th ballot, ending the longest multiple-ballot speaker election since before the Civil War. He was removed from office less than ten months later, the first time in American History the House voted to remove its incumbent speaker. This led to multiple rounds of voting across multiple weeks to replace him, ultimately leading to

8550-547: The first times since 1953–1955 that there was single-party Republican leadership in Washington, interrupted from 2001 to 2003 as Senator Jim Jeffords of Vermont left the Republican Party to become independent and caucused with Senate Democrats to give them a 51–49 majority. In the 2006 midterm elections, the Democratic Party regained control of the House of Representatives. Nancy Pelosi was elected Speaker of

8664-407: The first woman to hold the office, Pelosi became the first speaker to return to power since Sam Rayburn in the 1950s. Following the 2022 midterm elections which saw the election of a narrow Republican Party majority in the House, Pelosi did not seek a Democratic leadership post in the next Congress. The Democratic Caucus named her "Speaker Emerita". Kevin McCarthy then became the new Speaker of

8778-514: The government' ... can inform [the] determination of 'what the law is ' ". Under the Rules of the House, the speaker may designate a member to serve as speaker pro tempore , acting as the body's presiding officer in the speaker's absence. In most instances, the speaker pro tempore designation lasts for no more than three legislative days, although in the case of illness of the speaker, the speaker pro tempore may serve for ten legislative days if

8892-438: The institution's administrative head. Speakers also perform various other administrative and procedural functions. Given these several roles and responsibilities, the speaker usually does not personally preside over debates—that duty is instead delegated to members of the House from the majority party—nor regularly participate in floor debates. The Constitution does not explicitly require the speaker to be an incumbent member of

9006-401: The leader of the Democratic Party in the House of Representatives and served as House minority leader for eight years before she led her party to victory in the 2018 elections. Following the 2018 midterm elections which saw the election of a Democratic Party majority in the House, Nancy Pelosi was again elected speaker when the 116th Congress convened on January 3, 2019. In addition to being

9120-457: The legislature, commenting in a New York Times editorial that "musicians, caterers, photographers and others should be immune from government coercion on deeply held religious convictions". IBM and other employers in the region expressed opposition to the bill, including concerns about hiring difficulties it would likely produce. Other politicians also objected, including Republican Baton Rouge Metro Councilman John Delgado, who called Johnson

9234-526: The list "shall act as Speaker pro tempore until the election of a Speaker or a Speaker pro tempore ." The speaker pro tempore is not in the line of succession for the presidency . Following the removal of Kevin McCarthy as speaker in October 2023 on a motion to vacate (the first time in history that a speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives was successfully removed by the House), Patrick McHenry

9348-560: The lost influence of the position. One of the most influential speakers in history was Democrat Sam Rayburn . Rayburn had the most cumulative time as speaker in history, holding office from 1940 to 1947, 1949 to 1953, and 1955 to 1961. He helped shape many bills, working quietly in the background with House committees. He also helped ensure the passage of several domestic measures and foreign assistance programs advocated by Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman . Rayburn's successor, Democrat John W. McCormack (served 1962–1971),

9462-405: The majority members of each House standing committee, including the Rules committee (although it's worth to note their appointment to the said committees must be ratified by a resolution of the full House). While the speaker is the functioning head of the House majority party, the same is not true of the president pro tempore of the Senate, whose office is primarily ceremonial and honorary. When

9576-434: The minority party or rejecting bills by the Senate. One famous instance came in the form of Thomas Brackett Reed (under Grover Cleveland ), a speaker notorious for his successful attempt to force the Democrats to vote on measures where the Republicans had clear majorities, which ensured that Cleveland's Democrats were in no position to challenge the Republicans in the House. Joseph Cannon was particularly unique in that he led

9690-413: The motion to vacate Johnson's speakership on the floor, forcing a vote on it within two legislative days. The House voted to table (kill) the motion by a vote of 359 to 43, allowing Johnson to remain speaker. 196 Republicans and 163 Democrats voted to kill the resolution; 11 Republicans and 32 Democrats voted against killing the resolution. The Democrats who supported Johnson claimed they did so because of

9804-525: The opposition". In May 2024, conservative columnist Marc Thiessen wrote in The Washington Post that "Johnson has gone from accidental House speaker to one of the most consequential House speakers in a generation" and that despite presiding over the smallest House majority in U.S. history, Johnson had become "one of the most effective speakers ever". In a Washington Times editorial, former Republican speaker Newt Gingrich wrote that he

9918-420: The other hand, when the speaker and the president belong to opposite parties, the public role and influence of the speaker tend to increase. As the highest-ranking member of the opposition party (and de facto leader of the opposition ), the speaker is normally the chief public opponent of the president's agenda. In this scenario, the speaker is known for undercutting the president's agenda by blocking measures by

10032-636: The power of the speakership once again began to decline, despite speakership elections becoming increasingly bitter. As the Civil War approached, several sectional factions nominated their own candidates, often making it difficult for any candidate to attain a majority. In 1855 and again in 1859, for example, the contest for speaker lasted for two months before the House achieved a result. Speakers tended to have very short tenures during this period. For example, from 1839 to 1863 there were eleven speakers, only one of whom served for more than one term. James K. Polk

10146-426: The purposes of determining a quorum. Through these and other rulings, Reed ensured that the Democrats could not block the Republican agenda. The speakership reached its apogee during the term of Republican Joseph Gurney Cannon (1903–1911). Cannon exercised extraordinary control over the legislative process. He determined the agenda of the House, appointed the members of all committees, chose committee chairmen, headed

10260-453: The results of the 2020 presidential election on the House floor and in court. A social conservative , Johnson supported bills to ban abortion nationwide before saying that in the wake of the Dobbs decision, abortion policy was the purview of the states. Johnson chaired the Republican Study Committee , the largest caucus of conservatives in Congress, from 2019 to 2021. He was vice chair of

10374-445: The same day, NBC News reported that Johnson was considering running if Jordan dropped out. On October 21, after Steve Scalise and Jordan had made unsuccessful bids for speaker, Johnson declared his candidacy to become the new Republican nominee for speaker but was beaten by Representative Tom Emmer on October 24. Emmer defeated Johnson, 117 votes to 97, on the fifth ballot. Shortly thereafter, Emmer withdrew his candidacy for

10488-409: The sanctity of human life, and biblical values, including the defense of traditional marriage, and other ideals like these when they've been under assault". Johnson is a professor at Liberty University and teaches classes at its Helms School of Government . From roughly 2015 to 2022, he was an occasional guest host of Tony Perkins 's radio talk show Washington Watch. The 8th District seat of

10602-433: The speaker and the president belong to the same party, the speaker tends to play the role in a more ceremonial light, as seen when Dennis Hastert played a very restrained role during the presidency of fellow Republican George W. Bush . Nevertheless, when the speaker and the president belong to the same party, there are also times that the speaker plays a much larger role, and the speaker is tasked, e.g., with pushing through

10716-474: The speaker usually does not participate in debate and only votes on the most significant bills. The speaker is responsible for ensuring that the House passes legislation supported by the majority party. In pursuing this goal, the speaker may use their influence over the Rules committee , which is in charge of the business of the House . The speaker chairs the majority party's House steering committee, which selects

10830-410: The speaker's chair, 1789–1791 (1st Congress) and 1793–1795 ( 3rd Congress ). As the Constitution does not state the duties of the speaker, the speaker's role has largely been shaped by rules and customs that evolved over time. Scholars are divided as to whether early speakers played largely ceremonial and impartial roles or whether they were more active partisan actors. From early in its existence,

10944-402: The speaker's primary function had been to keep order and enforce rules. The speakership was transformed into a position with power over the legislative process under Henry Clay (1811–1814, 1815–1820, and 1823–1825). In contrast to many of his predecessors, Clay participated in several debates and used his influence to procure the passage of measures he supported—for instance, the declaration of

11058-602: The speakership election until December 14 because of an election dispute in New Jersey known as the " Broad Seal War ". Two rival delegations, one Whig and the other Democrat, had been certified as elected by different branches of the New Jersey government. The problem was compounded by the fact that the result of the dispute would determine whether the Whigs or the Democrats held the majority. Neither party agreed to permit

11172-401: The speakership. Later on the same day, House Republicans voted to make Johnson their fourth nominee for speaker ; he beat write-in candidate Kevin McCarthy and Representative Byron Donalds , 128 votes to 43 and 29, on the third ballot. Johnson's bid was endorsed by former U.S. president Donald Trump . On October 25, the full House voted, 220–209, to elect Johnson as the 56th Speaker of

11286-596: The state's exclusion of the ark from the tourism tax incentive based on its "religious purpose and message" violated the First Amendment. After the ruling, Johnson said: "The court has affirmed a longstanding principle that the Constitution does not permit a state to show hostility towards religion. The First Amendment does not allow Christian organizations to be treated like second-class citizens merely because of what they believe." In September 2016, Johnson summarized his legal career as "defending religious freedom,

11400-446: The target of their election campaigns in 1980 and 1982 but Democrats managed to retain their majorities in both years. The roles of the parties reversed in 1994 when, after spending forty years in the minority, the Republicans regained control of the House with the " Contract with America ", an idea spearheaded by Minority Whip Newt Gingrich . Speaker Gingrich would regularly clash with Democratic President Bill Clinton , leading to

11514-484: The vital role he had played in providing funding for the federal government and for Ukraine. Greene did not rule out forcing another vote to oust Johnson. In October 2024, after Hurricane Helene impacted several American states, Johnson called the federal government's response a "massive failure". Johnson did not call Congress for a special session to address hurricane relief, saying it would be "premature" to return to Washington before assessing how much disaster relief

11628-441: The vote positively or negatively. Anyone who votes for the other party's candidate could face serious consequences, as was the case when Democrat James Traficant voted for Republican Dennis Hastert in 2001 ( 107th Congress ). In response, the Democrats stripped him of his seniority, and he lost all of his committee posts. Upon election, the new speaker is sworn in by the dean of the United States House of Representatives ,

11742-503: Was "deeply impressed" with Johnson, who he believes is "doing an excellent job" despite having "the most challenging speakership since the Civil War". Former Democratic speaker Nancy Pelosi said she respected Johnson and that "we have not that much in common, philosophically, but if you can trust somebody to be a person of his or her word you can find common ground." In July 2024, the editorial board at The Wall Street Journal published an opinion piece titled "Mike Johnson, Leader of

11856-409: Was a somewhat less influential speaker, particularly because of dissent from younger members of the Democratic Party. During the mid-1970s, the power of the speakership once again grew under Democrat Carl Albert . The Committee on Rules ceased to be a semi-independent panel, as it had been since 1910. Instead, it once again became an arm of the party leadership. Moreover, in 1975, the speaker was granted

11970-399: Was called by his opponents, sought to end the obstruction of bills by the minority, in particular by countering the tactic known as the " disappearing quorum ". By refusing to vote on a motion, the minority could ensure that a quorum would not be achieved and that the result would be invalid. Reed, however, declared that members who were in the chamber but refused to vote would still count for

12084-518: Was determined he "engaged in numerous improprieties and falsities in his representations not only to school donors, but to the Board of Trustees". The parent college has since been embroiled in administrative and legal problems. Johnson served from 2004 to 2012 on the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention . In 2015, Johnson founded Freedom Guard, a nonprofit law firm that engaged in religious liberty litigation. He

12198-590: Was its chief counsel. During his time at Freedom Guard, he "defended the sports chaplaincy program at Louisiana State University from attacks that it was unconstitutional". Also, when Kentucky officials withdrew millions of dollars of tax breaks from the Ark Encounter theme park in Williamstown, Kentucky , Johnson represented Ark Encounter and its owner, Answers in Genesis , in a 2015 federal lawsuit. The court ruled in favor of Answers in Genesis, saying

12312-440: Was not substantially different from the deal McCarthy negotiated. Hardliners attempted to push Johnson to abandon the deal, initially claiming that he had done so before Johnson clarified that he hadn't. As negotiations continued over the full-year funding bills, conservatives pushed Johnson to instead endorse a full-year continuing resolution, which under McCarthy's deal would result in automatic spending cuts. On March 6, 2024,

12426-408: Was particularly infamous for his marginalization of the minority Democrats and centralizing of authority to the speakership. In more recent times, Speaker Nancy Pelosi played a role in continuing the push for health care reform during the presidency of fellow Democrat Barack Obama and in pushing for increases in infrastructure and climate spending during the presidency of Democrat Joe Biden . On

12540-409: Was reelected speaker in the 111th Congress, and again in the 116th and 117th Congresses. The January 2023 speakership election occurred two months after the 2022 House elections in which the Republicans won a slim four-seat majority. Kevin McCarthy was nominated for speaker by the House Republican Conference but due to a division among the Republicans, no one received a majority of the votes on

12654-419: Was revealed to be the first name on McCarthy's list and became acting speaker. The intent of the rule was for the speaker pro tempore to serve for a short period, until the House elected a new speaker, but the House rules set no specific limit on the length of time that a member may be speaker pro tempore . The designation of a speaker pro tempore for purposes of succession, and for purposes of serving as

12768-589: Was signed into law by President Biden. The legislative package also included a House-passed bill to force the app TikTok to divest from its Chinese Communist Party -owned parent company, ByteDance , as well as the REPO for Ukrainians Act, a measure that allows the U.S. government to fund the Ukrainian war effort with assets seized from Russian oligarchs. On May 8, 2024, Greene (who had strongly opposed Johnson's resolve to provide Ukraine with further aid) introduced

12882-429: Was then revealed, by Livingston himself, who had been publicly critical of President Bill Clinton 's alleged perjury during his sexual harassment trial, that he had engaged in an extramarital affair. He opted to resign from the House, despite being urged to stay on by House Democratic leader Gephardt. Subsequently, the chief deputy whip Dennis Hastert was selected as speaker. The Republicans retained their majorities in

12996-503: Was threatened by the defection of several members from his own party who chose not to vote for him. Boehner's tenure as speaker, which ended when he resigned from Congress in October 2015, was marked by multiple battles with the conservatives in his own party related to " Obamacare ", appropriations , among other political issues. This intra-party discord continued under Boehner's successor, Paul Ryan . When Republican leader John Boehner succeeded Pelosi as speaker in 2011, Pelosi remained

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