Republican US House speaker to step down after midterm rout

WASHINGTON: US House Speaker Mike Johnson will step down as Republican leader following his party's crushing midterm election defeat, his spokesman confirmed to AFP on Wednesday.

Johnson, the highest-ranking Republican in the United States after President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, is second in the line of presidential succession.

Asked whether reports that Johnson would step aside were correct, his spokesman replied in a one-word email: "Accurate."

The Louisiana Republican told staff of his decision on Wednesday morning, a day after Democrats seized control of both chambers of Congress in a sweeping rejection of Trump's party and policies.

Johnson, 54, had led the House since October 2023, when he emerged as a compromise candidate after weeks of Republican infighting following the ouster of his predecessor, Kevin McCarthy.

He had campaigned extensively to preserve the Republicans' narrow House majority and previously suggested he might remain party leader even if Democrats won control.

His decision not to seek the minority leadership clears the way for a contest between current House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan, both fellow conservatives and Trump loyalists.

The president praised Johnson's leadership and said he would "stay out of" the race to find a successor, with the vote expected on Tuesday next week.

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"But the speaker was fantastic. The people under him were fantastic. All good people," Trump told reporters.

Johnson won re-election to his Louisiana seat, and his decision does not mean he is immediately resigning as speaker or leaving Congress.

Meanwhile, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries formally sought his colleagues' support on Wednesday to become the next speaker, a position he is widely expected to secure when the new Congress convenes in January.

Jeffries, who would become the first Black speaker of the House in US history, pledged to make affordability and accountability central priorities.

"The days of the House functioning like a wholly owned subsidiary of the Trump administration are over," he declared in a letter to Democratic lawmakers.

"We are going to hold the crooks accountable," he added, promising action on healthcare costs, tariffs and the Iran war.