Washington, 3 January 2025 (dpa/MIA) - Republican Mike Johnson won his re-election as speaker of the US House of Representatives, by a razor-thin margin, in the first round of voting on Friday.

Two Republican members of the House - the lower parliamentary chamber - initially voted against Johnson in the roll-call vote, creating the impression that the faction leader might face a setback.

However, the vote was not formally concluded immediately, and discussions took place with party dissenters on the sidelines of the plenary hall.

These dissenters subsequently changed their votes at the last minute, sparing Johnson a public humiliation.

Johnson, a loyalist of President-elect Donald Trump, remains in the third most powerful position after the US president and vice president.

Johnson reportedly had to worry about his re-election due to a narrow Republican majority and tensions within his faction. The Republican faction in the House of Representatives is fragmented and often engages in intense power struggles.

Johnson rose to the most powerful position in the US parliament in October 2023 after radical Republicans ousted his predecessor Kevin McCarthy.

McCarthy had managed to hold the position for less than a year and needed 15 rounds of voting to ascend to the post in January 2023.

Republican representatives from the right wing of the faction regularly go rogue and refuse to follow the leadership.

Johnson also struggled to unite the faction behind him. He hoped for the support of Trump, who has immense influence over his party.

Trump praised Johnson before the vote as a "good, hard working, religious man" who would "do the right thing."

Johnson, a lawyer and former radio host from Louisiana, has been in the House of Representatives since 2017. The father of four is an evangelical Christian.

Before his rise to Speaker, Johnson was part of the extended Republican leadership but was largely unknown on the national stage.

Only after taking his top position did he make a name for himself, needing to rapidly gain experience in holding a fragmented faction together.

Photo: EPA