President-elect Trump appears to have helped Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., avoid a messy, drawn-out battle to lead the House of Representatives.
Trump spoke by phone with both Reps. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., and Keith Self, R-Texas, after they initially voted for people other than Johnson as speaker, two knowledgeable sources told Fox News Digital.
Self and Norman were seen disappearing into a side room with Johnson and others after the roll call vote concluded, but before the vote formally closed.
A few minutes later they emerged and announced that they both would vote for Johnson – cementing the Republican victory in Louisiana.
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Speaker Mike Johnson won re-election to lead the House, with support from newly elected President Donald Trump. (AP/Getty)
Self then confirmed to reporters that he had spoken to Trump by phone several times on Friday.
“I talked to him a few times today,” Self said. “We had a lively discussion.”
Self did not elaborate much further on the content of the discussion.
But the two people who spoke to Fox News Digital said Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., linked Trump to Self and Norman by phone after they voted against Johnson.
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Two people said Rep. Nancy Mace linked the holdouts to Trump. (Getty Images)
Mace declined to comment, but Fox News Digital spotted her and Johnson sharing a hug on the House floor after she and others were in the side room with the holdouts.
She was also previously seen in intense conversations with Norman off the House floor.
Norman also later confirmed to reporters that he had spoken with Trump on Friday.
“He just made his point about Mike being the only one who can be elected,” Norman said, adding that Trump did not change his vote but rather a “commitment that things will change” from Johnson.
Johnson won the presidency of the House of Representatives in the first round of voting, after initially appearing to be on the verge of losing.
Representative Keith Self confirmed he has spoken with Trump. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Self, Norman and Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., each voted for people other than Johnson, seemingly putting the speaker’s gavel out of reach.
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But House leaders did not formally end the vote as they sought a path forward. Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers were told to be in the House of Representatives immediately to prepare for a second vote.
However, that second vote did not take place and Johnson was sworn in as chairman on Friday afternoon.
