Democrats in the House are growing concerned that the chamber may not have a speaker selected before Congress is tasked with certifying the 2024 election results.
According to a senior Democratic committee aide who spoke with Politico, lawmakers worry that infighting among the Republican Party could once again delay the House from having a clear leader. The aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, noted the GOP’s struggle to pick a leader in 2023, when former Speaker Kevin McCarthy was selected after 15 votes.
Congress is required to hold a joint session on January 6, 2025, to certify the 2024 presidential election results. The new House session will convene on January 3. If the House fails to choose a leader in three days, the chamber will be unable to establish governing rules and would be required to continue to vote on a speaker until a leader is selected.
“As a result of the protracted Republican infighting of 2023—we are concerned about the possibility that a similarly messy Speaker fight could slip past Jan. 6 and prevent the House from convening the joint session,” the Democratic aide told Politico, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
“Staff are looking into that scenario as it’s unclear how Congress would be able to comply with the Constitution’s demand for a joint session when the House, effectively, doesn’t exist,” the source added.
Newsweek sent an email to Johnson’s office for comment on Monday.
Republicans currently hold a three-seat majority in the House, although Democrats have a chance to flip the lower chamber of Congress this fall. According to election models run by The Economists, Democrats have a 56 percent chance of taking a slim lead in the House, while Republicans have a 44 percent chance.
Per YouGov’s final election model released on Friday, Democrats have a 58 percent chance of taking a slim lead in the House, compared to Republicans’ 42 percent chance.
If Democrats take control of the chamber, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries would likely be elected as Speaker without much delay or party infighting.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, who was elected to his seat after four vote sessions that spanned over three weeks last October, has faced pushback from members of his caucus despite having the full support of former President Donald Trump. In the spring, the House rejected a motion to oust Johnson from the speaker chair less than seven months after he was elected to the position.
That motion was brought by Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who despite being a close Republican ally of Trump wanted to kick out Johnson after the House passed a Ukraine funding package.
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