2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — The 119th Congress is convening for the first time and House Speaker Mike Johnson has narrowly been reelected to his post. The Louisiana Republican has the support of President-elect Donald Trump and House Republicans decided on Friday to reelect him to his post with just one holdout.

Texas Rep. Keith Self, Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie and South Carolina Rep. Ralph Norman all voted against Johnson during the initial vote. Self and Norman switched their vote to Johnson after speaking with him away from cameras. Far-right Republicans have at times grown frustrated with Johnson’s leadership and are prone to demanding concessions when their votes become essential.

Here’s the latest:

Rep. Ralph Norman, a Republican who switched his vote to Johnson after initially opposing him, said the president-elect’s argument was simple: “Mike’s the only one who can be elected.”

Trump’s phone calls — first with Norman, then with all three GOP lawmakers who had opposed Johnson — eventually helped convince them to change their votes.

Norman said that what changed his mind was Johnson’s “assurance that he was going to fight for everything going forward.”

He was officially sworn in as Speaker of the House by Rep. Hal Rogers of Kentucky, the longest-serving member of the House.

Cheers erupted in the House chamber after lawmakers took their oaths of office and were officially sworn in as members of Congress.

Mike Johnson is taking back the speaker’s gavel with support from arch-conservatives, but they are making it clear their continued support is contingent upon ambitious policy goals.

The House Freedom Caucus released a list of legislation demands after its members delivered key votes to make Johnson speaker, including enacting permanent immigration changes, federal spending cuts and banning members of Congress from stock trading.

“There is always room to negotiate on so-called ‘leadership’ positions under the rules,” the GOP lawmakers said in their letter.

Trump called Johnson’s reelection an “unprecedented vote of confidence in Congress” in a post on Truth Social.

“The People of America have waited four years for Common Sense, Strength, and Leadership,” Trump wrote. “They’ll get it now and America will be greater than ever before.”

The President-elect had endorsed Johnson and sent good wishes earlier on Friday ahead of the vote.

Shortly after 2 p.m., with the vote for House speaker hanging in the balance, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee sent out a fundraising email announcing that he had fallen short under the subject line: “Mike Johnson FIRED?!”

“Mike Johnson just LOST his bid to be reelected Speaker…” the solicitation read. “This is just the beginning of House GOP chaos.”

But the DCCC post, which sought donations of at least $4 from “every Democrat reading this” for midterm congressional elections in 2026, went out too quickly.

House Republicans left the vote open while negotiations continued with recalcitrant members, and Johnson was narrowly elected on the first ballot.

The New York Democrat did the same thing 14 months ago when Johnson was elected speaker after Republicans ousted Kevin McCarthy from the post.

Democratic Rep. Hakeem Jeffries is urging lawmakers to work together to lower the cost of living for Americans and to secure the border.

“America is too expensive,” Jeffries said at one point as he prepared to hand the speaker’s gavel to Republican Rep. Mike Johnson.

As Democrats applauded loudly, some Republicans chuckled that Jeffries was stressing issues that they made a priority in the 2024 presidential election.

218 for Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La.

215 for Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-NY

1 for Rep. Tom Emmer, R-MN

Republican Mike Johnson has been reelected as Speaker of the House on first ballot, winning over GOP critics to retain the gavel.

Escorting Johnson to the dais are members of his leadership team as well as the entire delegation of his home state of Louisiana.

Once he arrives, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries will hand him over the gavel as is customary to do, a nod to the peaceful transfer of power.

Reps. Ralph Norman and Keith Self have changed their votes at the 11th hour, supporting Johnson for speaker.

Johnson stood next to both men in the well and shook their hands after they voted.

In his first speech as leader, Thune said his priority is to maintain the filibuster, the legislative tactic that allows senators to delay consideration of a measure and require 60 votes for passage.

He said he will ensure “the Senate stays the Senate.”

President-elect Donald Trump has called for the elimination of the filibuster in his first term. But Senate Republicans have firmly opposed any changes.

Many Democrats wanted to eliminate it in the early days of President Joe Biden’s term but were stymied by moderates who said it would upend the Senate’s deliberative role.

Nine new senators were sworn in — four Democrats and five Republicans. A sixth Republican, Jim Justice of West Virginia, announced last month that he will wait to enter the Senate until after his successor as the state’s governor, Republican Patrick Morrisey, is sworn in on Jan. 13.

Johnson is two votes down from seizing the gavel in first-round balloting.

He huddled with several lawmakers and others took phone calls.

Two of the Republican holdouts, Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina and Rep. Keith Self of Texas, followed Johnson away from the cameras off the chamber floor.

Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, who received one vote for speaker, told a group of reporters outside the chamber that he didn’t see any actual pathway to stepping into the role.

He projected confidence that his Republican colleagues would sort out how to elect Johnson.

“I think it’s between those members and Speaker Johnson,” he said. “This is a deal-making town. They’ll make deals. They’ll figure it out.”

Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, voted for Donalds during the first-round roll call instead of Johnson.

A huge group of far-right House members — including the three current detractors — have entered a private room off the House floor with Mike Johnson.

The first ballot vote remains open and the chamber remains without a speaker.

House Democrats find themselves in a familiar place, watching their colleagues across the aisle battle it out over who will become speaker once again.

Members laughed and gasped as several Republican lawmakers voted for candidates besides Johnson on the first ballot.

Their leader, Hakeem Jeffries, posted on social media during the vote, saying, “The GOP Civil War is in full swing. And it’s only Day 1.”

Rep. Stacey Plaskett, who represents the U.S. Virgin Islands, received cheers and jeers as she inquired why members of Congress elected by U.S. territories were not included in the roll call for House speaker.

“We are collectively the largest per capita of veterans in this country,” said Plaskett, who added that the territories are home to more than 4 million American citizens.

The territories include Plaskett’s home territory of the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands

“We must do something about this problem,” Plaskett said as she received a standing ovation from her Democratic colleagues and calls for “order” from Republicans across the aisle.

Only members of Congress elected from U.S. states are eligible to vote for speaker.

His allies are talking to some of the holdouts on the House floor.

Speaker Mike Johnson walked off the floor as the first ballot for his speaker’s race was coming to a close.

Three Republicans voted for other candidates besides Johnson.

Texas Rep. Keith Self voted for Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida for House Speaker, in lieu of Rep. Mike Johnson.

It is the third GOP defection from the incumbent speaker.

With Reps. Thomas Massie and Ralph Norman both voting for candidates that are not Johnson, the Louisiana Republican is now at risk of losing his first ballot for speaker.

There were several far-right members who abstained from voting thus far and could potentially vote at the end.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi received a standing ovation from her Democratic colleagues when she cast a vote for Jeffries, her successor as Democratic minority leader, to serve as House Speaker.

The two, sitting across the aisle from each other in the chamber, embraced for a quick hug before voting resumed.

Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie kept to his word on Friday in voting against Johnson for speaker on the first roll call vote, voting instead for the No. 3 Republican, Rep. Tom Emmer.

Reps. Hakeem Jeffries and Mike Johnson received back-to-back standing ovations from their respective sides of the aisle as they each cast votes for themselves to serve as Speaker of the House.

They are standing in the back row of the chamber. It’s unclear if they will vote at the end of the roll call when the clerk calls their name again.

Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., said achieving perfection requires incremental gains and hard decisions.

“None of us will get exactly what we want,” she said.

The message is aimed at some of the most conservative members of the House Republican conference who have come into Friday’s vote without previously committing to Johnson.

House Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain kicked off the speaker election by nominating Mike Johnson to be the speaker for the 119th Congress.

1. Nominations

Once the House is in a quorum — meaning the minimum number of members are present to proceed — nominating speeches will be made on behalf of the nominees for speaker. Republicans chose Johnson as their nominee for speaker in a closed-door vote in November. A week later, Democrats unanimously chose Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., to remain their leader despite the party’s electoral losses.

2. Voting

Lawmakers call out the name of their choice for speaker from the floor, a rare and time-consuming roll call. Members often liven up the proceedings by shouting or standing when casting their vote. Lawmakers are not obligated to vote for their party’s nominated candidate. Any name can be called out from the House floor. While it has been the tradition for the speaker to be a member of the House, it is not required.

3. Results

Should Johnson come up short, it is likely the clerk will move immediately to start another roll call vote. If a speaker candidate wins a majority of those present and voting, a bipartisan committee, usually consisting of members from the home state of the chosen candidate, will escort the speaker-elect to the chair on the dais where the oath of office is administered.

As Johnson’s political fate hangs in the balance, members are using this time to take selfies with the Louisiana Republican.

GOP lawmakers are bringing their babies, grandbabies and siblings to take a photo with the speaker before the House begins his reelection vote.

The next speaker must receive a majority of the votes cast. If not, balloting continues until someone meets that threshold.

Two years ago, it took Kevin McCarthy 15 rounds of balloting before he gained enough support to take the gavel.

Those voting won their election in November, but they cannot take the oath of office until a new speaker has been elected.

New and returning lawmakers donned their Sunday best to the first day of the new Congress, with many of the women adhering to the traditional colors of their political party.

Red ties and dresses for Republican members can be seen scattered across the House floor while across the aisle Democratic women styled various shades of blue.

Johnson commands one of the slimmest majorities in modern times, 220-215, having lost seats in the November election.

The abrupt resignation of Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida drops his tally to 220.

That leaves him relying on almost every Republican for support in the face of Democratic opposition, though the typical 218 majority needed could shift with absences and others voting only “present.”

Before his election for speaker can begin, Speaker Mike Johnson opened Friday’s session by declaring that the 118th Congress has come to a close.

On his way to the House floor earlier, he was asked by reporters if he will win the speakership during the first round of voting.

“I hope so. We’ll see,” he said.

Lawmakers are quickly filtering into the House chambers for the start of the 119th Congress, where the first order of business will be a quorum call and then a roll call vote to elect the next speaker.

For now, it’s a festive atmosphere with many lawmakers bringing their children onto the House floor with them to take in some history.

Soon, it will become more serious as the speaker vote is held.

Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., has the backing of President-elect Donald Trump, but can’t afford hardly any holdouts from the Republican side of the room if he hopes to return to holding the gavel.

Democratic lawmakers are standing and applauding as Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi has entered the House chamber as a new Congress begins to gather.

The former speaker had hip replacement surgery recently at a U.S. military hospital in Germany after falling while at an event in Luxembourg with other members of Congress.

The former speaker walked gingerly to a seat in the middle of the chamber. Several colleagues moved quickly to greet her.

New and returning lawmakers walked around the chamber, taking selfies with their children and families ahead of what is expected to be a contentious few hours as Republicans fight amongst themselves to elect a speaker.

Johnson commands one of the slimmest majorities in modern times, 220-215, having lost seats in the November election. That leaves him relying on almost every Republican for support in the face of Democratic opposition.

Here’s a look at some of the Republicans who’ve signaled they may vote against him:

1. Texas Rep. Chip Roy: Roy is an unflinching member of the Freedom Caucus who lashed into Republican leadership’s handling of the year-end spending bill for failing to cut spending and adhere to House rules. He said he was undecided on the speaker’s vote for Johnson, but added “my desire is to give him grace” in hopes they can deliver on the GOP agenda.

2. Indiana Rep. Victoria Spartz: Spartz said on Tuesday that she was still undecided and doubted Johnson’s ability to deliver on Trump’s agenda. “I would give him a chance, but I would like to hear from him on what plan he has,” she told Fox News.

3. Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie: Massie is a near-certain no. “You can pull all my fingernails off, you can shove bamboo up them, you can start cutting off my fingers, I am not voting for Mike Johnson tomorrow,” Massie said in an interview on One America Network that aired last night.In a Friday morning post on X, he reiterated that stance, saying “Johnson isn’t the right guy.”

The speaker’s election is set to dominate the opening of the new Congress, but the day will also bring a roster of history-making members.

In the Senate, two Black women — Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland — will be sworn in, the first time in the nation’s history two Black women senators will serve at the same time.

Sen.-elect Andy Kim of New Jersey also is making history as the first Korean American to join the chamber.

In the House, Sarah McBride is the first openly transgender person in the Congress.

And Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, who recently suffered a fall overseas and underwent hip replacement surgery, will make her own return to Washington, a reminder of the power she wielded when Democrats last held the majority.

The speakership has been vacant only 13 times in U.S. history, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. No speaker had ever been removed until eight Republicans joined with Democrats to oust McCarthy.

Barring those instances, a speaker is normally elected at the start of a new Congress and serves in the job for the full two-year session.

House Speaker Mike Johnson walked into the Capitol on Friday morning seemingly optimistic about his chances of being reelected speaker by his conference despite growing frustrations amongst far-right members of the party.

When asked by a reporter what his message was to his holdouts, the Louisiana Republican said, “We need to unify,” adding that the speaker election “is not just about one person but about moving forward with the America First agenda, the mandate given forward by the American people.”

Johnson denied that he was making any back-door deals.

“There is no quid pro quo here. I don’t do anything in exchange for a vote other than commit to make this institution work as effectively and efficiently as possible,” he said.

President-elect Donald Trump called the U.S. House speaker “a fine man of great ability” and wished him good luck on Friday, when the new Congress convenes and Republican lawmakers will decide whether to reelect Mike Johnson to lead their party.

Trump endorsed the Louisiana Republican earlier this week, but whether that support will be enough is unclear. Trump said Johnson “is very close to having 100% support,” but some members of the far right have grown increasingly frustrated with Johnson’s leadership and his handling of funding fights such as the recent short-term spending bill.

“A win for Mike today will be a big win for the Republican Party,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

Johnson’s weak grip on the gavel threatens not only his own survival but Trump’s ambitious agenda of tax cuts and mass deportations as Republicans sweep to power in Washington.

A flop by Johnson could throw Monday’s congressional certification of Trump’s 2024 election victory into turmoil if there is no speaker.

Johnson commands one of the slimmest majorities in modern times, having lost seats in the November election, leaving him relying on almost every Republican for support and with nearly no votes to spare.

Electing a speaker is the first order of business for the U.S. House after a new session of Congress begins at noon. It’s a vote that members take even before being sworn into office.

The House cannot organize until it has a speaker because that person effectively serves as the House’s presiding officer and the institution’s administrative head. The House can elect a new speaker at any time if the person occupying that role dies, resigns or is removed from office.

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NEW YORK (AP) — In an extraordinary turn, a judge Friday set President-elect Donald Trump’s sentencing in his hush money criminal case for Jan. 10 — little over a week before he’s due to return to the White House — but indicated he wouldn’t be jailed.

The development nevertheless leaves Trump on course to be the first president to take office convicted of felony crimes.

Manhattan Judge Juan M. Merchan, who presided over Trump’s trial, signaled in a written decision that he’d sentence the former and future president to what’s known as an unconditional discharge, in which a conviction stands but the case is closed without jail time, a fine or probation. Trump can appear virtually for sentencing, if he chooses.

Rejecting Trump’s push to dismiss the verdict and throw out the case on presidential immunity grounds and because of his impending second term, Merchan wrote that only “bringing finality to this matter” would serve the interests of justice.

He said he sought to balance Trump’s ability to govern, “unencumbered” by the case, against other interests: the U.S. Supreme Court’s July ruling on presidential immunity and the public’s expectation “that all are equal and no one is above the law,” and the importance of respecting a jury verdict.

“This court is simply not persuaded that the first factor outweighs the others at this stage of the proceeding,” Merchan wrote in an 18-page decision.

Trump lashed out at Merchan on his Truth Social platform Friday, writing that it “would be the end of the Presidency as we know it” if the judge’s ruling is allowed to stand.

He repeated his claims that the case was an “illegitimate political attack” and “nothing but a Rigged Charade” perpetuated by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat. He didn’t elaborate on potential next legal moves.

Bragg’s office declined to comment on Merchan’s ruling.

Former Manhattan Judge Diane Kiesel said the ruling can’t be appealed under New York law, but Trump nonetheless might try to appeal it. In any event, he can appeal his conviction — a step that can’t be taken until he is sentenced — but he won’t be able to pardon himself. Trump’s case was tried in state court, but presidential pardons only apply to federal crimes.

Trump takes office Jan. 20 as the first former president to be convicted of a crime and the first convicted criminal to be elected to the office.

The Republican was found guilty in May of 34 counts of falsifying business records.

The charges involved an alleged scheme to hide a hush money payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels in the last weeks of Trump’s first campaign in 2016. The payout was made to keep her from publicizing claims she’d had sex with the married Trump years earlier. He says that her story is false and that he did nothing wrong.

The case centered on how Trump accounted for reimbursing his personal attorney at the time, Michael Cohen, for the Daniels payment. Cohen on Friday called Merchan’s decision to go ahead with the sentencing “judicious and appropriate.”

The conviction left Trump, 78, facing the possibility of punishment ranging from a fine or probation to up to four years in prison. His sentencing initially was set for last July 11, then postponed twice at the defense’s request.

Then, after Trump’s Nov. 5 election, Merchan delayed the sentencing again so the defense and prosecution could weigh in on the future of the case.

Trump’s lawyers urged Merchan to toss it. They said it would otherwise pose unconstitutional “disruptions” to the incoming president’s ability to run the country.

Prosecutors acknowledged there should be some accommodation for his upcoming presidency, but they insisted the conviction should stand.

They suggested various options, such as freezing the case during his term or guaranteeing him a no-jail sentence. They also proposed closing the case while formally noting both his conviction and his undecided appeal — a novel idea drawn from what some state courts do when criminal defendants die while appealing their cases.

Merchan ruled that Trump’s current status as president-elect does not afford him the same immunity as a sitting president. Setting the verdict aside and dismissing the case would be a “drastic” step and would “undermine the Rule of Law in immeasurable ways,” Merchan wrote.

Before Trump’s November election, his lawyers sought to reverse his conviction for a different reason: the Supreme Court’s immunity decision, which gave presidents broad protection from criminal prosecution.

Trump was a private citizen — campaigning for president, but neither elected nor sworn in — when Cohen paid Daniels in October 2016. He was president when Cohen was reimbursed, and Cohen testified that they discussed the repayment arrangement in the Oval Office.

The Trump hush money attorneys contended that the jury got some evidence that should have been shielded by presidential immunity. Merchan later rejected that argument, but in the meantime, the election raised new issues.

While urging Merchan to nix the conviction, Trump also sought to move the case to federal court, where he could also assert immunity. A federal judge repeatedly said no, but Trump appealed.

The hush money case was the only one of Trump’s four criminal indictments to go to trial.

Since the election, special counsel Jack Smith has ended his two federal cases. One pertained to Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss; the other alleged he hoarded classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

A separate, state-level election interference case in Georgia is in limbo after an appeals court removed prosecutor Fani Willis from the case.

Trump’s lawyers argued that Smith’s decision to dismiss the federal indictments against Trump should propel a dismissal of the New York hush money case, as well. But Merchan said he found that argument unpersuasive, noting that the hush money case was in a “vastly” different stage.

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Associated Press writer Larry Neumeister contributed.

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