Thanks to record-setting expulsions and resignations, House Republicans enter the chamber’s next session with one of the smallest majorities ever. Speaker Mike Johnson has just 219 seats compared to the Democratic Party’s 213.
Decline in Numbers
While the GOP’s majority was small from the outset in 2022, it shrunk even further when Kevin McCarthy became the first speaker to be voted out of office.
Chaotic Times
McCarthy was ousted by a group of Republicans who were unhappy with his willingness to work with Democrats. What followed was weeks of chaos as Republicans fought over who would replace him.
Inglorious Record
The ballot included multiple candidates, including Jim Jordan and eventual victor Mike Johnson. It was the first multiballot election in a century.
Tossed Out
In December, infamous freshman Representative George Santos was expelled from Congress by a bipartisan majority of 311 to 114. “To hell with this place,” Santos said as he left.
Another Record
Santos was the first representative to be expelled without having been convicted of a crime since the Civil War. Only six representatives have been expelled in the history of the US.
Poor Behavior
After Santos was elected in 2022, the media began to uncover his many lies. These included having Jewish ancestry, claiming his mother died on September 11, and scamming dog breeders.
Final Straw
In November 2023, the House Ethics Committee found that Santos had used “every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit.” He was accused of spending campaign funds on Botox, credit card debt, OnlyFans, and holidays to the Hamptons.
Quotidian Reasons
House Republicans lost another vote when Majority Leader Steve Scalise left to receive treatments for blood cancer. He is expected to return in February.
Accusations of Hypocrisy
Scalise announced that he would receive an autologous stem cell transplant, which set off viral posts accusing him of hypocrisy for accepting a treatment he supposedly opposed in the past. While Scalise has opposed embryonic stem cell research, that is different from the type of stem cell treatment he is receiving, which uses a patient’s own stem cells rather than cells from an early-stage human embryo.
Other Opportunities
In January, Representative Bill Johnson left to take up a position at Youngstown State University. As of right now, the GOP’s majority in the House has shrunk to just six seats, a tiny margin.
Historical Precedent
The last time the House majority was this small was in the early 1950s, when President Dwight Eisenhower’s Republican Party had just 221 seats against 213 Democrats and an independent. Several deaths shrunk that majority to just five seats, 218 to 213.
Flipping Power
In the early 1930s, deaths actually flipped the balance of power. After election day, Republicans had 218 seats to the Democratic Party’s 216. However, at this point, the first session did not take place until 13 months after the election, and by then, special elections to replace those who’d died had resulted in 219 Democrats to 213 Republicans.
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