Republicans re-elect Johnson as US House speaker despite dissent

WASHINGTON: House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson was re-elected to the chamber’s top job on Friday by a razor-thin margin that highlighted potential fissures among president-elect Donald Trump’s Republicans on Capitol Hill.

Johnson appeared to initially fall short of the majority he needed to retain his job in a roll-call vote that lasted nearly two hours, but two Republican opponents switched their votes to support him after lengthy negotiations. He won re-election with 218 votes — the minimum number needed.