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Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) was re-elected Speaker of the House on Friday on the first vote, but not after a bit of drama. During the roll call vote a number of Republican members remained silent when their names were called, and three voted for other Republicans. At the end of the roll call vote, those who had remained silent initially went to the well and entered votes for Johnson, bringing the vote total to 216 for Johnson and 215 for Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).

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That wasn’t the end of that vote, though. The vote was left open because without a Speaker, the House would have to either go into recess or immediately start another round of voting. Johnson’s team went into action, working to convince Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) and Rep. Keith Self (R-TX), two of the members who’d voted for someone other than Johnson, to change their votes. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) was seen speaking on her mobile phone (to Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles), then having a conversation with Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), the other holdout, but there didn’t seem to be a concerted effort to convince him to change his mind.

About a half hour later, Johnson, Self, Norman, and a few others exited the chamber to discuss things. After approximately 20 minutes they returned, and Self and Norman went to the well to change their votes with the clerk. With those changes, Johnson hit the 218 vote mark, securing the Speakership.


READ MORE BREAKING: We Have a Speaker, on the First Vote

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What happened? Obviously some type of arm-twisting occurred, but Politico now reports that, according to two Republicans granted anonymity to speak freely, President-elect Donald Trump spoke to both Norman and Self during that time and that they and other holdouts “secured general commitments from Johnson and other Republicans about the GOP conference working more collaboratively.” According to another Republican who spoke to Politico, though, “[Trump’s] one-on-one calls weren’t what got it done.”

Self confirmed that he spoke to Trump multiple times, calling it “lively.” But he added that they have the same agenda. He also said that he and Norman wanted transparency on the budget reconciliation process, which Republicans plan to use to pass ambitious legislation on the border, energy and taxes.

“We have got to make sure this Congress is as strong as possible when we go up against the Senate on the reconciliation package, because there are debates on what the reconciliation package even looks like. So that’s all I wanted to do today, is to make this Congress successful for the Trump agenda,” Self said.

After the vote was finalized Trump congratulated Johnson on Truth Social, writing:

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Congratulations to Speaker Mike Johnson for receiving an unprecedented Vote of Confidence in Congress. Mike will be a Great Speaker, and our Country will be the beneficiary. The People of America have waited four years for Common Sense, Strength, and Leadership. They’ll get it now, and America will be greater than ever before!

The House Freedom Caucus, of which Massie, Norman, and Self are members, released a letter to their Republican colleagues after the Speaker vote concluded demanding “that the House of Representatives deliver – quickly” on implementing President-elect Trump’s legislative agenda.