Emmer and Johnson advance to final round for GOP speaker candidate

House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) and Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) emerged as the top two candidates coming out of the closed-door GOP speaker election on Tuesday.

Lawmakers will now move on to a final ballot, which will determine who will become the next speaker-designate. After that, Republicans can push for a floor vote for the full House to vote on a speaker, although a timeline for that remains unclear.

HOW HOUSE REPUBLICANS WILL PICK THEIR NEXT SPEAKER NOMINEE IN CROWDED FIELD

Republicans started the day with eight candidates on the secret ballot, which shortly fell to seven after Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL) announced he would drop his bid moments before voting began.

Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX) was dropped during the first round, followed by Rep. Jack Bergman (R-MI) in the second and Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA) in the third. Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK) was eliminated in the fourth round, during which Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) voluntarily dropped out of the race.

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Emmer has emerged as the winner of each round so far. However, the majority leader failed to secure the majority vote during any of those ballots, triggering a subsequent round.

After a nominee is chosen, members will have a voice roll call to determine conference support before heading to the floor.