Mike Johnson (LA) Ascends to Speaker of the House

In a vote on Wednesday October 25th, Mike Johnson was unanimously elected Speaker of the House by the Republican Caucus, receiving 220 votes. Johnson succeeds Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) after nearly three weeks without a speaker.

The Congressman from Louisiana has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2016 and is currently serving his fourth term. He represents Louisiana's fourth congressional district, which includes nearly 760,000 residents. Johnson currently serves as the vice chair of the House Republican Conference for a second time, after being unanimously re-elected last year. He also holds the position of deputy whip for the 118th Congress, in addition to sitting on the House Judiciary Committee and on the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government.

The Louisiana lawmaker's life changes immediately. From a backbencher to 3rd in line to the presidency, Mr. Johnson must now deal with the addition of a new major security detail, substantial fundraising expectations, and an extraordinarily divided conference.

Johnson is known for being a close ally of President Trump and defended him during the impeachment hearings. The Louisiana Republican led the amicus brief signed by more than 100 House Republicans in support of a Texas lawsuit seeking to overturn the 2020 election results in four swing states. One can credit his newfound ascension to his short tenure and low profile - which has resulted in Johnson not making many enemies on Capitol Hill - as well as overall fatigue from the past three weeks.

Speaker Johnson laid out his initial agenda over the past week and its quite a legislative laundry list. It will be interesting to see how he navigates the perils of a divided conference with a slim majority.