Washington DC - House Speaker Mike Johnson will step down as Republican leader following his party's crushing midterm election defeat, his spokesman confirmed to AFP Wednesday.
Johnson, the highest-ranking Republican in the US after President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, is second in the line of presidential succession.
Asked whether reports that Johnson would step aside were correct, his spokesman responded in a one-word email: "Accurate."
The Louisiana Republican told staff of his decision Wednesday morning, a day after Democrats seized control of both chambers of Congress in a sweeping rejection of Trump's party.
Johnson (54) had led the House since October 2023, when he emerged as a compromise candidate after weeks of Republican infighting following the ouster of his predecessor, Kevin McCarthy.
He had campaigned extensively to preserve the Republicans' narrow House majority and previously suggested he might remain party leader even if Democrats won control.
His decision not to seek the minority leadership clears the way for a contest between current House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Judiciary Committee chairman Jim Jordan.
Johnson won re-election to his Louisiana seat, and his decision does not mean he is immediately resigning as speaker or leaving Congress.