Speaker Mike Johnson, having retained his leadership post with Donald Trump’s nudge, is now under pressure to advance the president-elect’s agenda.
But to keep the job and pass legislation, Johnson will need to navigate a bare-bones majority. While the House breakdown for the 119th Congress is technically 220-215, the margin will temporarily fall to 217-215 when several members leave for the Trump administration. That means Johnson can’t lose a single vote on a party-line bill because a tie is a defeat.
That emboldens any one Republican to derail the House over a legislative dispute. Here are seven potential troublemakers who could complicate Johnson’s job in the weeks ahead:
Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas)
A member of the far-right Freedom Caucus and the influential Rules Committee, Roy is one of the hardline conservatives best-positioned to wreak havoc in the House. He was among Johnson’s initial holdouts during last week’s speakership vote and later signed a letter with other dissidents warning the speaker to “prove he will not fail to enact President Trump’s bold agenda.”
Roy’s position on the Rules Committee gives him leeway to help kill procedural votes needed for party-line bills before they get to the floor.
Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.)
Maryland’s sole Republican US House member is chairman of the Freedom Caucus, as well as a member of the powerful Appropriations Committee. The HFC chairman was the top signature on the warning letter to Johnson of 11 Republicans — two more than needed to raise a motion to oust a speaker under new House rules.
If Johnson loses Harris’ support, it bodes poorly for his status with the Freedom Caucus’ dozens of members — and his ability to keep the gavel.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.)
Where there’s a camera, there’s Mace. She spent the end of 2024 railing against transgender women using bathrooms that align with their identity, including pushing to ban Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), the first transgender person elected to Congress, from using women’s bathrooms in the Capitol. Mace last Congress was one of eight Republicans who voted to oust McCarthy as speaker.
Mace isn’t ideologically consistent. When she became a House member in 2021, she voted to certify the results of the 2020 election and vocally supported LGBTQ equality. Mace appears to have moved to the right on multiple issues over her two terms, though her positions can be tough even for her colleagues to parse. That makes her a wild card who could derail party-line bills.
Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.)
Spartz is a particularly unpredictable Republican lawmaker who could rile up House leadership. She initially said she wouldn’t run for re-election in 2024 and then changed her mind.
She will not caucus with the House Republican conference (but still remain a registered Republican) and intends to reject any and all committee assignments from GOP leadership.
Spartz hasn’t been clear how she will get her priorities enacted if she’s not at the table for decision making whether it be at committees hearings or as a member of the House GOP conference.
“I have objection that our processes are not set up to govern and committees are not really important to deliver legislation and I think that’s why Congress is so broken,” Spartz said.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.)
Massie has built a reputation since his election in 2012 as one of the biggest thorns in GOP leadership’s side, notorious for often bucking leadership-backed bills.
He was the sole Republican to oppose Johnson’s speakership bid last week, as his fellow defectors changed their positions before the vote closed. Massie instead cast his vote for Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.).
Massie has embraced the role of fiscal hawk. The Kentucky Republican has consistently voted against government funding legislation and has already begun drawing hard lines on the GOP’s ambitious reconciliation plans, pushing for spending cuts to pair with any funding increases.
In the 118th Congress alone, Massie voted 100 times against the GOP majority on bills of various subjects.
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.)
Unlike the other troublemakers, Lawler is a moderate who won re-election even as a number of fellow GOP lawmakers from New York swing districts were defeated. He sided with the Biden administration in March when he signed a discharge petition to force a vote on a controversial bill to send aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.
Lawler and his fellow New York moderates threatened to tank legislation last Congress over their push to increase the state and local tax deduction. The SALT cap is a hot-button issue that puts Lawler at odds with scores of Republicans. If Lawler confronts leadership over SALT, which history shows is likely, he’s well-positioned to jeopardize Johnson’s tax priorities.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.)
The 35-year-old firebrand, who rose to prominence as a conservative social media influencer before joining the House two years ago, is already seeking to shake up things in the 119th Congress. Luna wants the House to allow new mothers to vote by proxy.
Proxy voting was implemented during the Covid-19 pandemic by former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and was discarded by her successor Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) when the GOP took back control of the chamber in 2023.
Luna, who gave birth in August of that year, is working with Democrats on a rule that would let members vote from home for a period of time after giving birth. Johnson opposes that rule, contending that proxy voting in any case is unconstitutional.
By working with Democrats to force a vote on this initiative, Luna shows that she’s willing to go around leadership. If Luna’s proxy voting rule succeeds, it will most immediately benefit a Democrat, Rep. Brittany Pettersen (Colo.), who is expecting a baby early this year.
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