US House Speaker Mike Johnson will step down as the Republican leader in the House after his party’s losses in the midterm elections, his spokesman has confirmed.
Asked whether reports of Johnson’s decision were correct, the spokesman replied in a one-word email: “Accurate.” The Louisiana Republican told his staff on Wednesday morning, a day after Democrats won control of both chambers of Congress.
Johnson, 54, has led the House since October 2023, when he emerged as a compromise candidate after weeks of Republican infighting that followed the removal of his predecessor, Kevin McCarthy. As speaker, he is second in the line of presidential succession after Vice-President JD Vance.
He had campaigned widely to keep the Republicans’ narrow House majority and had earlier suggested he might stay on as party leader even if Democrats won.
His decision not to seek the post of minority leader opens the way for a contest between House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan. Johnson won re-election to his own seat, and the decision does not mean he is stepping down as speaker immediately or leaving Congress.