House Republican Leadership: Speaker Johnson Steps Back, Jordan Enters Race
Speaker Mike Johnson will not seek the minority leadership post after Democrats take control of the House, while Jim Jordan formally declares his candidacy.
By Adriana Abebe ·
House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana will step down from his leadership role next year, and Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio has formally announced his bid to replace him as minority leader.
A source confirmed on Wednesday that Johnson will not run for the top spot among Republicans when Democrats assume control of the chamber. This decision clears the path for a new figure to represent the Republican Party on Capitol Hill. Jordan entered the race the same day by sending a letter to his House colleagues. In that communication, he promised an aggressive strategy for the coming two years.
“In these next two years, our job cannot be merely to spotlight how radical this new Democrat party is. Offense, not defense, wins elections,” Jordan wrote. He added that Republican policies focus on safer neighborhoods, retaining more income for families, and protecting American values. “To restore our majority, we must restore voters’ faith in our ability to deliver on these principles,” he stated.
The leadership change follows a major loss for Republicans in the midterm elections held on Tuesday. As of Wednesday morning, Democrats had secured at least 228 seats. They were also on track to win many of the 68 races that had not yet been called. Johnson, who won reelection to his own seat, attributed the party's setbacks to political circumstances rather than internal failures.
Speaking on Tuesday evening, Johnson noted that Republicans had to defy more than a century of history to hold the House. “It’s only happened twice in 90 years that a sitting president has picked up or held seats for his party in the first two-year cycle,” he said. He emphasized the difficulty of maintaining a majority under the current political conditions.
The internal dynamics of the Republican conference have shifted following the election results. An open letter from Rep. Greg Steube of Florida, sent on Wednesday to House and Senate GOP leaders, criticized the current leadership. “You have been embarrassingly weak and more afraid of governing conservatively than of disappointing the voters who put us in office,” Steube wrote. He urged leaders to step aside so new management could take a strictly conservative direction.
House parties typically select their leaders during internal elections when a new Congress convenes each January. The full House then elects a speaker based on a majority vote on the floor. Johnson's exit and Jordan's entry mark the beginning of this selection process for the next session.
