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IrelandJohnson rules out minority leader bid after Republican midterm losses
CBS News's Capitol Hill coverage captures the speaker accepting the election outcome while defending his party's record.
CBS News
Story of Why this story? One of CBS News's most watched videos since yesterday, with 88,144 views.
Mike Johnson on midterm results: "The people have spoken"
Things we can learn from the video
Press to jump
- 0:10Johnson acknowledges Republican disappointment and says the election outcome must be accepted.
- 2:18He argues that conservative principles will face serious challenges in the next Congress.
- 5:58Johnson says he will remain speaker until January but will not run for minority leader.
- 7:30He criticizes polling predictions and says Republicans were underrepresented.
- 9:13Johnson says logistical constraints prevent postponing Republican leadership elections.
Mike Johnson will remain House speaker until January, but he will not seek to lead Republicans in the minority, he told reporters in the Capitol Hill briefing carried by CBS News.
"I decided not to run for minority leader," Johnson said. He described the decision as following prayer and reflection, saying he did not feel it was the best course for him.
That announcement gives a concrete next step to a briefing otherwise focused on how Republicans should respond to their midterm losses. Johnson acknowledged the outcome without questioning its legitimacy: "The results were not what we hoped for and worked for, as you all know," he said, adding that this is how the country's system works.
He also resisted the suggestion that the campaign could have done substantially more. In its description of the segment, CBS highlights his assessment that "there's not much more that any of us could've done." Johnson defended the Republican majority's record on taxes, spending and border security, and argued that conservative principles would face challenges in the next Congress.
Asked about polling, he blamed inaccurate predictions and what he described as an underrepresentation of Republicans. He also said logistical constraints prevented postponing the party's leadership elections.
Alongside those questions about his departure from leadership, Johnson described the transition already underway: meeting incoming representatives with Hakeem Jeffries and preparing a reception for new Republican members.
Republican politician who has served as speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives since 2023. He has represented Louisiana's 4th congressional district since 2017.
More on Wikipedia ›Democratic leader in the U.S. House of Representatives and House minority leader since 2023. He has represented New York's 8th congressional district since 2013.
More on Wikipedia ›Published on Trari
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- Channel
- CBS News
- Subscribers
- 7,130,000 ▲ 10,000 this week
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 20,721,960
- Channel views, pace per day
- 550,079 (on a normal day: 2,535,774)
- Video published
- November 10, 2026
- Video views so far
- 90,674 (less than a day online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 88,144
The numbers
CBS News's briefing video drew about 88,000 views since yesterday, the most among the channel's new uploads.
💡 Test your knowledge
Which Democratic leader did Johnson say joined him in meeting incoming representatives?
Johnson described meeting incoming freshman representatives alongside Hakeem Jeffries.