Mike Johnson: A More Conservative House Speaker

With all 220 Republicans present in support, Representative Mike Johnson, a conservative Republican from Louisiana, was elected the 56th speaker of the U.S. House. Speaker Johnson is an ally of former president Donald Trump and supported overturning the results of the 2020 election.

What to expect: Even as he vowed to seek common ground with Democrats, Speaker Johnson will face an intense test of his leadership in the weeks ahead and will need to navigate the challenges of leading a divided caucus and managing legislative priorities in the coming weeks.

• The federal government will run out of money on November 17 and Congress must pass another short-term funding bill or budget deal to avoid a shutdown. If a short-term funding bill is needed, Johnson supports a bill to fund the government for up to five months, expiring on January 15 or April 15.
  
  
• Congress is also set to consider supplemental funding for national security concerns, including border security funding, assistance for Ukraine and Israel, and domestic policy goals.
  
  
• Johnson will no doubt face the same challenges as ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), including the arduous task of governing a fractious conference with a razor-thin majority that includes conservative hardliners and members in swing seats.

Impact on employers: It is not likely that Johnson will use his speakership to pursue social issues impacting employers, given the dynamics and political ideologies in the Republican Caucus. However, examples of positions Johnson has previously taken include:

• Johnson supported the U.S. Supreme Court decisions in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard on affirmative action and Groff v. DeJoy regarding religious accommodations in the workplace.
  
  
• In the last Congress, Johnson introduced the “Stop the Sexualization of Children Act of 2022” (H.R.9197) modeled after Florida’s “don’t say gay” bill – that would have prohibited discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as related subjects, at any institution that received federal funds.

What's next: Heading into the 2024 election cycle, Republicans and Johnson will prioritize efforts on demonstrating their party can govern and will focus on the swing states where President Biden’s favorability is low. Democrats will capitalize on Johnson’s positions on LGBTQ+ issues and abortion on the campaign trail.