Mike Johnson, Republican, Louisiana, nominated for chair; re-elected He took the lead in the House on Friday, despite losing one fellow Republican in the final vote tally.
In the end, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) was the only Republican to vote against Johnson, but it could have been even worse for the House speaker. Rep. Keith Self (R-Texas) and Rep. Ralph Norman (R.C.) had originally voted for someone else but switched their support to Mr. Johnson.
Norman told Fox News he changed his vote after getting some assurance from Johnson.
“I said, 'Mike, are you going to give me specific examples of fighting for the things we mentioned? Will you keep your word?' He said, 'Yes.' . So I said, “Okay, I'll follow your word.” That's why I changed my vote,” Norman explained on “The Story” on Friday.
Trump wins speaker's vote over Johnson, cheers as “America is back''
Mr Johnson's future briefly looked uncertain on Friday afternoon when Mr Norman, Mr Massey and Mr Self voted for someone other than Mr Johnson to be chair, and the gavel appeared to be out of reach.
Mr Johnson then met behind closed doors with Mr Self, Mr Norman and other MPs, and the vote was declared over. Both men later emerged and switched their votes to support Johnson.
Norman said the initial opposition was rooted in concerns about whether Johnson had the “willingness to fight for Trump's policies.”
“I had a long meeting with Chairman Johnson yesterday, and I didn't feel that he had the energy or desire to fight for President Trump's policies,” he said on “The Story.”
Mr Norman stood by his original decision to vote against Mr Johnson, claiming it was for the following reasons: ”It was the only way to have my voice heard. ”
Mike Johnson re-elected speaker: Here are the top 3 dramatic voting moments
In the end, the Louisiana Republican won the first round along party lines, in stark contrast to his predecessor Kevin McCarthy's long 15-round battle in 2023. Ta.
Mr. Johnson's re-election victory came despite a violent outcry by some conservatives who threatened to withhold their support from Mr. Johnson in protest of the handling of government funds and several other issues in the 118th Congress. It was brought to you.
“I think he now understands the fact that you can't have a suspension vote that allows more Democratic votes than Republicans. That's what will destroy the country,” Norman said. “If we do the same thing over and over again as we have done over the last 14 months, we're going to end up in the same position. I'm not going to go along with that, and I didn't.”
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“Mike has a great opportunity to show the American people that he's going to fight, not just talk. He's going to have Trump's support, and that's all good.”
Fox News Digital's Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
