The House vote to determine the next speaker is scheduled for Jan. 3, three days before a joint session of Congress is set to certify President-elect Donald Trump's election victory.
However, a protracted battle for the former could delay the latter, Politico reported. That's because Congress can't do anything else until it elects a speaker.
Republicans last month won the White House and control of both chambers in the next Congress, and many in the party are eager to get started on the Trump agenda.
However, the GOP holds a slim lead in the House — one Republican could stop a candidate from winning the gavel — and conservatives have expressed doubts that Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., should continue in the job.
Johnson appeared certain to win a full term until last week, when he agreed to an initial spending deal with Democrats. That led to a conservative revolt, with several lawmakers calling for a new speaker.
Trump, who has supported Johnson in the past, has not commented on whether he backs the lawmaker for speaker in the next Congress.
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., has vowed to oppose Johnson, and several more Republicans are noncommittal.
If a battle for the speakership emerges and extends beyond 1 p.m. on Jan. 6, congressional scholars agree there are procedural options that could help ensure the counting and certifying of Electoral College votes that day, Roll Call reported.
Lawmakers also have the authority to pass a law changing certification of Electoral College votes from Jan. 6, Politico reported.
"The country would be going into one big gray area," Steve Smith, a professor of political science and global studies at Arizona State University, told Roll Call. "The one precedent that is clear and could help determine what happens is at the start of a new Congress, the election of the speaker is the first thing the House does.
"Nothing else happens until the speaker is elected. It's been that way since 1789 when the first Congress convened. Now, that worked just fine for the first Congress. But that could prove problematic here."
Loyola Marymount University law professor Justin Levitt, who served as senior policy adviser for democracy and voting rights in President Joe Biden's White House, told the outlet he thinks a joint session to count electoral votes could proceed without a speaker.
Vice President Kamala Harris, as president of the Senate, will preside over a joint session of Congress to certify her own election defeat to Trump.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.