Johnson is next to win GOP speaker nomination as Republicans push for floor vote

House Republicans selected Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) as their next speaker nominee, hoping to end the weekslong saga that has left the lower chamber at a standstill.

Johnson won the nomination after three rounds of voting on Tuesday evening, making him the fourth House Republican to be elected speaker-designate in the last three weeks. The victory comes just hours after Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) withdrew as the speaker nominee after it became evident he could not secure the 217 majority votes needed on the floor.

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Republicans started the forum with six candidates on the secret ballot, which shortly fell to five after Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK) announced he would drop his bid before voting began.

Members went through four rounds of voting, of which Johnson emerged as the winner of each. However, the majority whip failed to win the simple majority on the first two ballots, triggering a subsequent round.

Patrick Semansky/AP

Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN) was dropped during the first round, followed by Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX) in the second and Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) in the third. Rep. Mark Green (R-TN) voluntarily withdrew after the second round.

Republicans will reconvene around 9 a.m. on Wednesday for another closed-door vote, during which lawmakers will conduct a roll call to see whether 217 members would support Johnson’s nomination on the floor. If he succeeds, lawmakers are expected to call for a floor vote, although the time frame for that remains unclear.

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Some Republican members pushed for a floor vote as soon as possible, pressing party leaders to end the leadership elections as soon as possible.

“Taking a break is by design because it keeps the old guard in,” said Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN). “Every one of these guys has been scuttled, and the reason they’ve been scuttled is because they could be the speaker and our old guard would lose power. That’s what it’s all about.”