Rep. Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) retains his position as House Speaker after his colleagues voted to re-elect him.

Backed by President-elect Donald Trump, Johnson secured the required 218 votes in the first round of voting after persuading two Republicans, Reps. Ralph Norman and Keith Self, to support him instead of their preferred candidates.

With a narrow Republican majority, Johnson could only lose one vote, which he did to Rep. Thomas Massie, who had previously stated his opposition. Instead, Massie cast his vote for Rep. Tom Emmer, a crypto industry ally.

The voting process took a swift 2.5 hours, a significant improvement over the lengthy election of October 2023.

Although Johnson has not vocalized strong support for crypto matters, he is seen as friendly to the industry, having previously backed the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (often referred to as FIT21) and an anti-central bank digital currency measure.

Johnson’s re-election, along with Emmer’s role as Majority Whip, positions crypto-friendly lawmakers to advance cryptocurrency legislation in 2025.