Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., informed his staff on Wednesday morning that he will not run for minority leader in the next Congress, one day after Democrats won the House majority, according to NBC News. Four sources familiar with the phone call confirmed his decision to the network.
The announcement leaves the top Republican leadership post in the House open. Republicans plan to hold an internal vote on Nov. 10 to choose their candidate for the position, NBC News reports.
Johnson, who won re-election to his own House seat on Tuesday, is expected to remain in the chamber next year, according to NBC News. He has held the speaker's gavel for two terms, having moved into the job after Republicans removed then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in October 2023.
Why it matters
Johnson's exit opens a contest over the direction of the House Republican conference at a moment when members are openly questioning how the party lost the majority. The internal election will signal whether Republicans want a leadership team built around continuity or a sharp break from the current one.
The race also carries consequences beyond the Capitol. The next minority leader will be the party's chief counterweight to a Democratic majority that, according to NBC News, intends to pursue investigations of President Donald Trump and focus on affordability issues. How Republicans organize their response will shape the next two years of congressional conflict.
Scalise enters the race with a unity pitch
Majority Leader Steve Scalise, the No. 2 Republican in the House and a close Johnson ally, announced Wednesday that he is running for minority leader in a letter to colleagues. Scalise, also of Louisiana, became a nationally known figure after surviving an assassination attempt during the 2017 congressional baseball shooting.
In his letter, Scalise acknowledged the scale of Tuesday's defeat, writing that the result was "far worse than any of us expected," and that Republicans had been unable to "defy history," according to NBC News. He described the moment as difficult for the conference but said he has faced adversity before, and he argued that the party must be candid about what happened while emerging more unified.
Jordan makes an oversight-focused case
Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, is also seeking the post, telling colleagues in a letter Wednesday that he is running. Jordan is a prominent conservative voice in the House and a consistent defender of Trump, NBC News reports.
Earlier in his career, Jordan was the founding chairman of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus and frequently clashed with Republican leaders. He ran unsuccessfully for minority leader and speaker in the past before taking on committee roles. He has also chaired the Oversight Committee.
In his letter, Jordan presented himself as "battle-tested on the oversight front" and said he understands how Democrats will conduct investigations of Trump, per NBC News. He called for a leadership team that is "active and engaged, forward-thinking and straight-shooting."
A surprise challenge down the ballot
The leadership shake-up extends beyond the top spot. Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, who chairs the Republican Study Committee — the largest conservative caucus on Capitol Hill — said he will challenge Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., for the whip position, the No. 2 job in the minority, according to NBC News.
That contest adds another front to the party's internal reckoning. Some Republicans, in the wake of Tuesday's results, have called for a wholesale change to the leadership team, NBC News reports.
What to watch
Republicans vote on their leadership candidate Nov. 10, and the results will show how far the conference wants to go in remaking its top ranks.
