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WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Keith Self, R-McKinney, voted against House Speaker Mike Johnson’s reelection to lead the lower chamber on Friday, before switching his vote for Johnson at the last minute.
Self was one of three Republicans to initially vote against Johnson during Friday’s vote — which appeared as though it would block his leadership bid. U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie, a libertarian leaning Republican from Kentucky, cast a vote instead for U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota. Massie communicated his opposition to Johnson days ahead of Friday’s vote, but the other opposing votes had kept their plans secret. U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina voted for House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan of Ohio. Self voted for Florida’s Byron Donalds.
The defections denied Johnson the 218 votes needed to secure the gavel. But Self and Norman switched votes to Johnson before the vote was declared over, allowing Johnson to retain the speakership.
Notably, U.S. Reps. Chip Roy of Austin and Michael Cloud of Victoria — both deeply conservative members who hinted dissatisfaction with Johnson — ended up voting for the Louisiana Republican. They had kept their votes secret until Friday’s vote, leading to speculation they would be among the votes to hamper Johnson’s leadership bid. Roy has long clashed with House leadership, asserting the longstanding procedures of the House takes power away from rank-and-file members and neglects addressing key conservative priorities — namely reining in the federal debt.
The two Texans were among a handful of Republicans who initially stood in silence when their names were called, in an apparent signal of initial protest. But when their names were called a second time, they both went for Johnson.
Self often votes in line with Roy and Cloud. All three are members of the right-wing House Freedom Caucus, and Roy served as its policy chair last Congress.
Self said he voted against Johnson to secure from him a commitment that would give his wing of the party a strong position to advance Trump’s policy agenda. Self said he spoke with Trump twice on Friday, including after he voted against Johnson.
“We had to go through this to reach an agreement that we were going to be strong on the Trump agenda. That’s what this was all about, making sure that we will have a strong negotiating presence at the table,” Self said outside of the House chamber.
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Self said he had told other members of the House Freedom Caucus beforehand about his vote and that “they understood.”
Self is a hardline conservative currently entering his second term in Congress. He was elected in 2022 after the incumbent Republican, Rep. Van Taylor, withdrew from the race after admitting to having an affair. Self was the runner up in the Republican primary that year. He previously served as Collin County judge.
Self’s flip came as Republicans urged the party to unify as it takes control of both chambers of Congress and the White House. The House could not do anything until it had a speaker. Members couldn’t be sworn in, committees couldn’t gather and legislation couldn’t pass. Congress cannot certify the presidential election results until both chambers are sworn in, a point Johnson has emphasized to his colleagues. Congress is scheduled to certify President-elect Donald Trump’s election on Monday.
“I’m a MAGA conservative, but I’m also someone who can get everyone in that broad array that we have in the House GOP to work together, and that’s what’s necessary in the days ahead. And that’s how we’re going to deliver on the America first agenda for the people. So we can’t wait to get started,” Johnson said Thursday on Fox Business.
The hiccup in Johnson’s election echoes the marathon series of votes in January 2023 to elect U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California as speaker. Several House Republicans voted against McCarthy unless he agreed to a series of rules changes in line with the right wing of the party. Roy was a leading negotiator through the saga, shuttling between the House floor and McCarthy’s leadership team offices to secure concessions for his camp. It took four days and 15 rounds of voting for McCarthy to secure a majority. Self’s initial vote for Donalds on Friday was a replay of Roy’s protest vote for the Florida Republican during the 2023 speaker race.
McCarthy was ousted from the speakership in October 2023, leading to another marathon round of voting and jostling to eventually landed Johnson — a relatively low ranking member of leadership — with the gavel.
Johnson faced uncertainty going into Friday’s election. Republicans control only 219 out of 434 seats (one seat is vacant following the departure of U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz). A speaker candidate needs a simple majority of all voting members of the chamber to secure the gavel, meaning Johnson could only afford a single defection — which Massie made clear would be him.
His defection had many Republicans holding their breath to see if another member would vote against Johnson and delay the start of Congress.
The entire Republican Conference appeared supportive of Johnson’s bid late last year when members gathered to pick their party’s nomination for speaker. The far right wing opted out of putting up a protest candidate as they did in 2022 against then-House Minority Leader McCarthy.
But tunes changed after Johnson unveiled a government spending resolution last month that included a host of unrelated priorities negotiated with Democrats. Trump and Elon Musk, the Texas-transplant billionaire who has become a Trump confidant, both called on Republicans to tank the bill and include a measure to lift the debt ceiling. Johnson released a compromise that got rid of many of the unrelated priorities negotiated with Democrats and that lifted the debt ceiling.
The right wing of the party was furious. The debt ceiling is one of Republicans’ favorite bargaining chips to get Democrats on board for future controls on government spending. Right wing members, including Roy, pushed back on Trump’s calls for a debt ceiling raise, prompting Trump to call for a primary challenger against Roy. The House eventually passed a funding measure that didn’t include a debt ceiling raise or many of the Democrat-negotiated priorities just hours before federal funding was set to expire.
Johnson and Roy huddled leading up to Friday’s vote to try to reach an agreement that would avoid another standoff akin to 2023. Members of the House are largely fatigued over the repeated speaker votes and view them as a national embarrassment. There are no alternative Republicans who would easily secure the support of the entire Republican conference if Johnson fails.
Johnson was endorsed by many Republican heavyweights outside of Congress, including Trump.
“Speaker Mike Johnson is a good, hard working, religious man. He will do the right thing, and we will continue to WIN. Mike has my Complete & Total Endorsement. MAGA!!!” Trump posted on social media on Monday.
Roy is not one to bend easily to political pressure. His admirers and detractors alike acknowledge that he is guided by his long standing principles of limited government more than party politics. Roy defied Trump in 2021 by voting to certify the presidential election results. He again defied Trump by endorsing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the 2024 Republican presidential primaries. His burn-it-down standoffs with leadership throughout the last Congress have led to talk of primary challengers, but none ever came forward last year.
Roy’s defiance against the norms predates his time in the House. He served as Sen. Ted Cruz’s first chief of staff when the senator used disruptive tactics against Senate Republican leadership. Among the most famous examples was Cruz’s 21-hour speech opposing government funding for the Affordable Care Act, which prompted several Senate Republicans to groan at the time.
Cloud also indicated dissatisfaction with current House Republican rules, writing on social media Thursday afternoon that “maintaining the status quo” will “undoubtedly fail Trump’s agenda.”
“There are concerns that a delay in electing a Speaker could lead to a brief delay in enacting President Trump’s agenda. This a legitimate concern that I share. The other option on the table is maintaining the status quo, which will undoubtedly fail Trump’s agenda. I’m working to help find a third option. We must ensure the House is structured to enact the America-First agenda in a way that has permanence,” Cloud wrote.
Several hardline conservatives, including Roy and Cloud, sent a letter Friday to fellow Republicans after the vote explaining their support despite “sincere reservations regarding the Speaker’s track record over the past 15 months.” The members said the need to pass Trump’s legislative agenda was more important than interpersonal conflicts and urged Johnson to quickly pass legislation to shrink federal spending.
“Personalities can be debated later, but right now there is zero room for error on the policies the American people demanded when they voted for President Trump — the ones necessary to save the country,” the members wrote.
