House could be heading for another speaker battle as Dems refuse to help Mike Johnson

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is losing support following last week’s funding crisis. But coming into the impending vote for a new speaker, Democrats have said they won’t help him like they did last time.

The new session of Congress is about to start, and on January 3, the House will vote for who should lead the chamber. In the past, it was nearly a sure thing that a sitting speaker whose party maintained control of the House would be reelected. But Johnson has always had a tenuous grasp on the position. Following the ouster of former Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy by the far-right wing of the party in November 2023, it took over three weeks for the House to agree on Johnson.

That vote was along party lines—but even still, Johnson was not solidly in position. Last May, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) filed a motion to remove him as speaker, but it failed, thanks in part to Democrats vowing to support him, according to Axios.

READ MORE: ‘Hell No!’: Democrats ‘Unified’ Against Reworked Funding Bill More Favorable to Trump

While Democratic support at that time was based around Johnson’s support for a Ukraine aid bill, that relationship has faltered after he abandoned his support of a bipartisan federal funding package last week. That fight also lost him favor with incoming President Donald Trump, as the Trump-preferred version of the package also failed. Trump was “upset”, according to Trump insiders speaking anonymously to Politico.

So far, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) is the only Republican to come out and say he’s not voting for Johnson. But other Republicans say they’re undecided, with Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) telling Axios it would be up to Democrats to save Johnson.

“If Mike Johnson wants to continue to be the speaker, he’s going to have to get Democrats to support him. Otherwise, it will be tough for him,” Nehls said.

Johnson himself appears to not be optimistic about keeping the speakership. He asked Elon Musk if he wanted the position, according to Newsweek. Though the speaker of the House has traditionally been chosen from the sitting congresspeople, there is no law saying the speaker cannot be an outsider. During the fight that ultimately lead to Johnson winning the position in November 2023, Nehls was pushing for Trump to get the gig.

The House cannot function without a speaker. In the event of a protracted fight for the position, the House will be unable to pass any legislation.