By Alex Miller The Washington Times Friday, January 3, 2025

President-elect Donald Trump wished Speaker Mike Johnson good luck ahead of Friday’s vote to elect a speaker of the House, but whether Mr. Trump’s backing is enough for him to win the gavel again is still in the air.

“Good luck today for Speaker Mike Johnson, a fine man of great ability, who is very close to having 100% support,” Mr. Trump said on Truth Social. “A win for Mike today will be a big win for the Republican Party, and yet another acknowledgment of our 129 year most consequential Presidential Election!! — A BIG AFFIRMATION, INDEED. MAGA!”

Whether Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, does win back the speakership is not guaranteed.

There are still enough undecided Republicans to sink his bid to remain speaker. He can only afford to lose two votes, and Rep. Thomas Massie, Kentucky Republican, has vowed to vote against him.

The speaker vote is the first order of business in the House to kick off a new Congress, and if lawmakers cannot coalesce around someone, the lower chamber is effectively at a standstill.

Mr. Johnson and many other House Republicans have warned that if the speaker vote is not wrapped up quickly, it will delay the certification of the 2024 election results and push back their timeline of implementing Mr. Trump’s agenda.

Friday’s vote will again test the limits of a Trump endorsement and his influence over the House Republican Conference. Before lawmakers left for Christmas, Mr. Trump’s call for the extension, or outright termination, of the government’s debt limit was blocked by hard-line Republican debt hawks.

Many of those same lawmakers are withholding their support of Mr. Johnson. The speaker spent much of Thursday meeting with the holdouts to try and get their backing, but they left without spilling whether the speaker had changed their minds.

Mr. Trump offered to call lawmakers on the fence or willing to vote against Mr. Johnson, and did so with Rep. Chip Roy, Texas Republican.

Republicans have warned Mr. Johnson not to cut any deals with the holdouts like his predecessor, former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, did to win the gavel in a grueling, four-day marathon of roll call votes.