Mike Johnson addresses his colleagues in the House of Representatives after his election as Speaker of the House on October 25, 2023 (Reuters)

An American conservative lawyer and politician, and member of the Republican Party, he was born in 1972 in Louisiana. He presided over the US House of Representatives in 2023, and in his first speech as Speaker of the House of Representatives, he proposed a draft resolution supporting Israel in its war on Gaza.

Birth and upbringing

Mike Johnson was born on January 30, 1972 in Shreveport, USA, and is the eldest of four children of James and Jane Johnson. His father was a firefighter and suffered burns and disability while working.

These injuries had a huge impact on Mike, who believed that his father's chance of survival was slim, and he considered it a miracle. He became a person of deep faith in his adolescence, abandoning his ambition to become a firefighter and instead aspiring to be a lawyer. Conservative.

Study and scientific training

Mike Johnson graduated from Captain Shreve High School in Shreveport, earned a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1995 from LSU, and served as president of the fraternity council at LSU.

He then completed his studies at the same university and obtained a doctorate in law in 1998. During his studies at the College of Law, he was elected president of the chapter and president of the Christian Legal Association, and volunteered for the Louisiana Family Forum of the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian organization.

Mike Johnson during a press conference at the US Capitol in Washington on January 17, 2024 (Reuters)

Political and practical experience

Mike Johnson began his career as a college professor and radio host. In 2004 he became a lawyer specializing in constitutional law and civil litigation, and became a lawyer and partner in a law firm.

He also served as a spokesman for the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a conservative Christian legal group with an anti-LGBT rights agenda, and in 2004 and 2014 defended Louisiana's ban on same-sex marriage before the state Supreme Court.

From 2004 to 2012, Johnson served as a trustee of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, the second largest Christian denomination in the United States.

In February 2015, he ran for his first election as a Republican to fill a vacant seat in the House of Representatives in the Louisiana Legislature, motivated by his opposition to abortion and same-sex marriage and his support for religious freedom.

During this period, he introduced the “Marriage and Conscience” bill - the attempt to legislate which failed - a bill aimed at avoiding harmful treatment by the state of individuals in response to their views on marriage.

Legislation introduced by Johnson to ban D&D surgery was unanimously approved by the House of Representatives and passed by the Senate, and the law went into effect in August 2016.

In 2016, he won the seat representing Louisiana's House District 4, was re-elected in 2018 and 2020, and in 2022 he won re-election unopposed.

Mike Johnson during a press conference after the weekly Republican Conference meeting in November 2023 (French)

During his terms in the House of Representatives, Johnson was a relatively unknown member until he played a pivotal role in promoting former US President Donald Trump's allegations regarding fraud in the 2020 presidential election. He was among 147 Republicans who voted to overturn the results of the presidential election, and led a team of lawyers. Who sought to cancel the election results in some American states.

Trump's loyal ally

Johnson entered Congress during the presidential elections that Trump won in 2016, and quickly became a member of his inner circle, and became a member of his defense team in the impeachment trial of Donald Trump before the Senate.

Johnson defended Trump's controversial actions such as his withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement and travel ban on citizens of some Muslim countries, and backed his claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged.

They both support the "America First" policy, which focuses on the interests of the United States before those of other countries, and advocate for stricter policies to limit immigration to America.

A staunch supporter of Israel

Mike Johnson supports what he considers "Israel's right to defend itself," and his first speech after his election as Speaker of the House of Representatives included a draft resolution supporting Israel in its war against the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas).

Johnson received a large donation from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) worth $95,000 in November 2023 to fast-track a massive $14 billion in support for Israel.

During his visit to Israel in 2020, Johnson denied the existence of injustice against the Palestinians in the region, saying, “We do not see any of that at all.”

Speaker of the US House of Representatives

The US House of Representatives elected Mike Johnson on October 25, 2023, by a majority of 220 votes to 209 votes in favor of Democratic rival Hakeem Jeffries, to become the 56th Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Mike Johnson upon his arrival to the meeting of Republican House members at the Capitol building in late 2023 (French)

Jobs and responsibilities

  • He won election to the House of Representatives to represent District 4 in Louisiana in 2016.

  • He was elected to Congress on January 3, 2017.

  • Member of the House Committees on the Judiciary (2017-2023).

  • Member of the Select Subcommittee on Arming of the Federal Government, Armed Services and Natural Resources.

  • He served as Vice Chairman of the House Republican Conference and Chairman of the Republican Study Committee, the large conservative caucus of House Republicans.

  • He assumed the position of Chairman of the Republican Party Discipline Committee on January 19, 2023, and in the same year he became Chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government.

  • The Speakers of the US House of Representatives were elected on October 25, 2023.

Source: Al Jazeera + Reuters + websites