After weeks of turmoil and inaction, the U.S. House of Representatives elected Louisiana conservative Mike Johnson as its new speaker on Wednesday.

The vote came more than three weeks after former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was booted from the position in a historic vote.

Johnson was the fourth nominee for the position following McCarthy’s ouster, and he received unanimous support from Republicans, who had been split on previous votes for other nominees. Democrats were unanimous in opposing Johnson.

Pittsburgh-area Republicans gave their support to Johnson and said he was the right candidate to unify behind. Johnson has served in Congress since 2017, making him one of the least experienced speakers in history.

U.S. Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Peters, congratulated Johnson and said he has seen first-hand Johnson’s tenacity and work ethic.

“(Johnson) has been a uniting voice in our conference since his first day in office, standing up for core Republican principles and spearheading our conservative causes,” Reschenthaler posted on X, the social media website formerly known as Twitter.

Reschenthaler serves as chief deputy whip for the Republicans, one of the caucus’s leadership positions. He has been supportive of McCarthy, and all other speaker nominees.

U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Butler, was one of the few Republicans to oppose nominee Jim Jordan of Ohio in the first round of voting, helping to sink Jordan’s nomination.

Kelly joined other Republicans in voting for Johnson. He called Johnson a leading conservative, and said he is ready to work with him to “grow our economy, secure our border and make America energy independent once again.”

“This is about America. It’s time to unite and get back to work,” Kelly said.

U.S. Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Centre County, whose sprawling congressional district includes Armstrong County, also congratulated Johnson.

Johnson received backing from former President Donald Trump. The Louisiana representative has a very conservative voting record, including opposing same-sex marriage and supporting abortion restrictions. Johnson, a lawyer, had rallied Republicans around Trump’s failed legal effort to overturn the 2020 election results.

Pittsburgh-area Democrats joined their caucus in unanimously opposing Johnson.

U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Aspinwall, pointed to Johnson’s vote against certifying the 2020 election, and said he is too extreme to be speaker.

“Both Speaker Johnson and the extreme Republican Party that he now leads in Congress threaten the core of American democracy,” Deluzio said.

Deluzio said Johnson has a history of voting against bipartisan bills, including the PACT Act — a bill providing health care funding to help veterans suffering from illnesses related to toxic exposure from burn pits — and the CHIPS and Science Act that is providing funding for manufacturing projects across the country.

U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, also cited Johnson’s efforts to try to throw out the 2020 election, as well as support for so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bills and a proposal to outlaw most abortions nationwide after 15 weeks. Pennsylvania’s law allows for abortions through 23 weeks of pregnancy.

Lee added that Johnson claimed last year Democrats wanted to intentionally open U.S. borders in order to “turn illegals into voters,” referencing undocumented immigrants. He said during a hearing in 2022 that the United States has “a literal invasion of lawless masses flooding over our border from more than 160 countries.”

“Mike Johnson has dedicated his public life to fighting right-wing cable news culture wars, waging wars on vulnerable people and taking on his party’s most extremist battles,” Lee said.

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