There is speculation Mike Johnson (R-La.) could be out as speaker of the House if he doesn’t hold firm in negotiations on a stopgap spending bill, known as a continuing resolution, that would fund the federal government through March 14. The bill needs to pass before Dec. 21 to avoid a partial government shutdown.
President-elect Donald Trump told Fox News that Johnson will “easily remain speaker” under his administration if he “acts decisively and tough” and eliminates “all of the traps being set by Democrats.”
Amid the speculation, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) floated the idea for a new speaker on X – Elon Musk. Paul’s post, in part, reads, “The Speaker of the House need not be a member of Congress . . . Nothing would disrupt the swamp more than electing Elon Musk . . . think about it . . . nothing’s impossible.”
The Speaker of the House need not be a member of Congress . . . Nothing would disrupt the swamp more than electing Elon Musk . . . think about it . . . nothing’s impossible. (not to mention the joy at seeing the collective establishment, aka ‘uniparty,’ lose their ever-lovin’…
— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) December 19, 2024
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said she’d also be open to supporting Musk as speaker.
THE QUESTION
Does the speaker of the House have to be a member of Congress?
THE SOURCES
- U.S. Constitution
- U.S. Government Publishing Office
- Congressional Research Service
- U.S. House of Representatives archives
THE ANSWER
No, the speaker of the House does not have to be a member of Congress. The Constitution does not specify that the speaker must be an elected representative. However, in practice, every speaker in U.S. history has been a member of the House of Representatives.
WHAT WE FOUND
The speaker is the presiding officer of the House of Representatives and is responsible for maintaining order and managing proceedings of the House. The speaker of the House is also third in line in presidential succession, which means should the president and vice president not be able to serve, the speaker would be the one sitting in the Oval Office.
Article 1, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution says the “House of Representatives shall choose their speaker and other officers,” but is vague on who can hold the position.
The speaker doesn’t even have to be a member of the House of Representatives. In 2013 and 2015, former Secretary of State Colin Powell was nominated, according to data from the Congressional Research Service (CRS). In 2019, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Joe Biden, before he was president, were both nominated.
Also in 2015, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) himself was also nominated to be speaker, even though he wasn’t a member of the House.
According to the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO), the speaker is the only House officer that “traditionally has been chosen from the sitting membership of the House.” The Constitution doesn’t limit the selection from among the class, “but the practice has been followed invariably,” the GPO says.
According to House archives, the speaker position has always been held by a House member. The first speaker was elected in 1789.
A speaker must be nominated, and then the House votes. A majority vote of 218 must be reached in order for the speaker to be elected. If no candidate wins a majority, ballots are re-cast until a speaker is chosen.
The 2023 session is only the 15th time in history multiple roll calls were necessary to vote for speaker, according to House archives. Thirteen of those times occurred before the Civil War “when party divisions were more nebulous.”
The last time a speaker election required two or more votes on the floor happened in 1923.
In July 2021, Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.) introduced a bill that would require the speaker to be a member of the House. The legislation was introduced after rumors swirled that former President Donald Trump would be nominated and voted into the role. The bill, known as the MEMBERS Resolution, has not been actioned since it was introduced in the House.
The position also doesn’t have to be held by the leader of the party. During the 2023 session, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) was nominated despite Republicans being in charge of the House.