OAN Staff Katherine Mosack
8:33 AM – Wednesday, November 4, 2026
House Speaker Mike Johnson has told staffers he does not intend to run for minority leader in Congress after the Republican Party suffered a slew of losses in the midterm elect
ions.
Johnson (R-La.) revealed his decision during a staff call on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) and House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) are both expected to compete for the position.
Johnson has served in Congress since he was first elected in 2016. He was elected as Speaker of the House in 2023, succeeding former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California, and was reelected in 2025.
Johnson recently said he wished to remain a leader even if the GOP lost control of the House. However, he prompted speculation about his intentions during an interview last month when he floated returning to his hometown after the midterms.
"If heaven forbid, if we lose this majority or whatever, I don't know what my next chapter of life is. I'm just open to it," he previously told Fox News. "If God moves on our hearts and says we should go back to my hometown of Shreveport and start a lawn business, I'll do that with equal fervor."
Republicans plan to hold leadership elections on November 10th, a week after Election Day, according to CBS News, citing an aide familiar with the situation.
President Donald Trump could play an important role in determining the next leaders of the party in Congress's lower chamber, and Republicans can be expected to closely scrutinize who the president backs.
"It's been the honor of my life to serve as the 56th speaker of the House — not a position we ever aspired to or expected to have," Johnson said in remarks from Shreveport, Louisiana, on Tuesday night.
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