Read Mike Johnson's departing message
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Speaker Mike Johnson in Mason, Michigan on Oct. 7. Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty Images
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told his Republican colleagues Wednesday that he will not seek a leadership position in the next Congress, citing the toll the job has taken on his family, according to a letter to his colleagues obtained by Axios.
Why it matters: Johnson's decision to step aside has opened the door to a leadership showdown between House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), as Republicans grapple with losing their House majority.
- Democrats handed Republicans a crushing defeat Tuesday night, winning by epic margins that set them on the path to a significant majority.
- Johnson's political future remains uncertain, with questions swirling over whether he will remain in Congress or leave the House altogether after three years as speaker.
- The Louisiana Republican had spent months traveling across the country and raising millions of dollars in a last-ditch effort to preserve the GOP's majority.
Driving the news: Johnson told colleagues that his decision to step aside was not an easy one, but that the demands of serving in leadership had required significant sacrifices from his family.
- "After three years in this role, I believe the time has come for me to give them more of the attention and presence they so richly deserve," Johnson wrote.
- Johnson made no mention of Republicans' election-night defeat or whether he plans to remain in Congress.
- Instead, he touted the conference's legislative accomplishments and its work alongside President Trump, writing that he was leaving leadership with "tremendous pride in all we have accomplished."
Zoom in: "When I was first elected Speaker of the House, few believed we could overcome the challenges before us. But time and again, we defied the odds, proved the skeptics wrong, and accomplished what many thought impossible," Johnson wrote in a letter to his colleagues.
- He touted House Republicans accomplishments over his three-year tenure, including the One, Big Beautiful bill.
- "We achieved these victories while navigating some of the narrowest legislative margins in our nation's history."
What's next: House Republicans are scheduled to elect their new leaders Nov. 10.
