There will be substantive leadership changes in the House after Republicans suffered blowout losses to Democrats during Tuesday’s midterm elections.
House Speaker Mike Johnson will not seek to lead House Republicans in the next Congress after Democrats captured the chamber in Tuesday’s midterms. Johnson informed staff of his decision during an all-staff call Wednesday morning, according to two sources who spoke with Fox News Digital.
The decision means Republicans will select a new leader as they prepare to move into the minority for President Donald Trump’s final two years. Johnson’s announcement came shortly after House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, launched his own bid to become House minority leader.
Jordan had been widely discussed among House Republicans as a potential leadership candidate if Democrats succeeded in taking control of the chamber. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., could also become a contender, potentially setting up a significant internal battle over the Republican conference’s direction.
Johnson’s departure from leadership follows sweeping Republican losses that gave Democrats control of both the House and Senate. Democrats flipped more than two dozen House districts while simultaneously capturing at least seven Republican-held Senate seats, according to the Associated Press.
Johnson easily survived his own reelection contest in Louisiana and will return to Congress for a fifth term despite relinquishing his leadership position. The Louisiana Republican was projected to receive nearly 60% of the vote against four opponents in his heavily Republican district.
Johnson’s decision therefore concerns his position inside House Republican leadership rather than his congressional seat. His announcement closes a remarkable chapter that began when he unexpectedly became speaker during the chaotic Republican leadership crisis of October 2023.
Johnson emerged as the GOP consensus candidate after Republicans removed former Speaker Kevin McCarthy and several other candidates failed to secure enough support. He subsequently won another term as speaker in January 2025 after Trump intervened to help resolve opposition from Republican holdouts.
Johnson spent much of the current Congress managing one of the narrowest House majorities in modern history while attempting to advance Trump’s legislative agenda. Before Election Day, Johnson repeatedly expressed confidence Republicans could overcome the traditional midterm difficulties confronting the president’s party. He told Fox News in September that he had given little thought to a minority leadership race because Republicans remained focused on preserving their majority.
Republicans ultimately suffered losses considerably larger than the handful of seats Democrats initially needed to take control. Those defeats immediately triggered questions about whether the existing Republican leadership team would remain intact.
One GOP lawmaker told Fox News before the election that Johnson would likely be the first leadership casualty if Republicans suffered significant losses. Another Republican predicted Johnson would voluntarily step aside rather than transition from speaker to minority leader.
That scenario materialized Wednesday morning. Johnson’s withdrawal potentially clears the way for Jordan, one of Trump’s most prominent congressional allies, to make another attempt at becoming the House GOP’s top leader.
Jordan unsuccessfully sought the speakership in 2023 after McCarthy’s removal but could not assemble enough Republican votes on the House floor. His prospective minority leadership campaign presents a different challenge because the position is decided internally by the House Republican conference.
Jordan has also spent recent months cultivating support beyond his traditional conservative base. Fox News reported that Jordan traveled extensively during the midterm campaign, helping Republicans ranging from conservatives to members of the party’s more moderate wing. Several moderate Republicans who opposed Jordan during his 2023 speaker campaign also lost their seats Tuesday, potentially changing the conference’s internal makeup.
Whoever wins the leadership contest will become the highest-ranking House Republican during two years of Democratic control. That role could become particularly consequential because Democrats have already signaled plans for extensive investigations of the Trump administration.
The Republican leader will be responsible for coordinating opposition to Democratic legislation while defending the administration against subpoenas, investigations and possible impeachment efforts. Johnson’s decision also ensures that both parties will enter the next Congress with dramatically different House leadership structures.
