Women in the Republican Party are becoming increasingly disillusioned with Speaker Mike Johnson’s leadership, according to multiple reports.
A New York Times report names four Republican congresswomen—Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene, Elise Stefanik, Nancy Mace and Anna Paulina Luna—and the varying degrees to which they have lost faith in Johnson’s ability to lead. An NBC report echoes the claims, citing two House Republican women who spoke to NBC News on condition of anonymity.
Much of the frustration stems from Johnson’s leadership during the government shutdown, which at 43 days became the longest in U.S. history. His handling of the Epstein files is also facing criticism.
Far from taking place behind closed doors, much of the discord between Republicans in Congress has played out in full view of the public, including on social media.
On Tuesday, Rep. Elise Stefanik posted on X that Johnson was a liar after he claimed she had not contacted him about a provision she wanted included in the defense policy bill.
“Just more lies from the Speaker,” she wrote. ”And in true to form, the Speaker texted me yesterday claiming he ‘knew nothing about it.’ Yeah right. This is his preferred tactic to tell Members when he gets caught torpedoing the Republican agenda.”
She then doubled down in a Wednesday interview with The Wall Street Journal, arguing that Johnson was an ineffective leader.
“He certainly wouldn’t have the votes to be speaker if there was a roll-call vote tomorrow,” she told the paper. “I believe that the majority of Republicans would vote for new leadership. It’s that widespread.” The Daily Beast has contacted Rep. Stefanik’s office for comment.
Other Republican women in Congress would appear to agree, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who cited “weak Republican men” as part of her motivation for resigning from Congress last month.
“There’s a lot of weak Republican men and they’re more afraid of strong Republican women,” she told the Washington Post during an October interview. “They always try to marginalize the strong Republican women that actually want to do something and actually want to achieve.” The Daily Beast has contacted Rep. Greene’s office for comment.
Greene had repeatedly clashed with Johnson as a result of his handling of the Epstein files, a cause she championed despite it resulting in her falling out with President Donald Trump.
The New York Times reported that some women in Congress felt pressured to remove their names from the discharge petition that ultimately forced the Justice Department to release the files, not just by Trump and the White House, but by Johnson as well.
The Times also reported that Rep. Nancy Mace was planning to meet with Greene next week to discuss following her out of Congress, although Mace told CNN’s Manu Raju that she was not planning to retire early, later confirming as much in a post on X.
“I loathe how slow Congress moves. I loathe we haven’t delivered on President Trump’s agenda. I loathe serious lawmakers aren’t taken seriously. I loathe the press making stories up. I loathe the politics of lies,” Mace wrote.
“Nowhere did I say I was retiring. Internet is wild. So too are my opponents spreading this nonsense.” Mace has previously announced her plans to run for governor of South Carolina in 2026.
Earlier this week, a senior consultant for Mace’s gubernatorial campaign resigned, claiming on X that Mace had “decided to turn her back on MAGA.”
“Nancy Mace has yet again decided to turn her back on MAGA to hug the political cactus that is the Rand Paul + Thomas Massie wing of the Party,” Austin McCubbin wrote. “I have notified her and her team that I am resigning because of this.”
The New York Times report also pointed to Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna going around Johnson to force a vote on a bill that would ban members of Congress from trading individual stocks as evidence of growing dissent among GOP women.
Asked about the dissent within his ranks on Wednesday, Johnson downplayed the issue, telling reporters he wasn’t worried at all, despite the growing threat ahead of the 2026 midterms.
“We’ve had one of the most successful, productive congresses in the history of this institution,” Johnson said. “We’ll put it up against any in history.”
“Not everybody’s going to be 100 percent satisfied with every decision and everything that happens, but that’s how this process works.”
The Daily Beast has contacted Speaker Johnson’s office for comment.
The post MAGA Mutiny Mounting as Female Leaders Turn on Mike Johnson appeared first on The Daily Beast.
