Overview
- Five of seven roll calls this week ended with equal numbers from each party voting, reflecting multiple 213–213 headcounts.
- Republican leaders postponed a vote to loosen shower‑head rules after expected absences raised the risk of defeat.
- A wave of departures and a death — including Mark Green, Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Mike Waltz leaving for the U.N. ambassadorship, and Doug LaMalfa’s passing — has created vacancies that only state‑run special elections can fill under constitutional rules.
- With Rep. Jim Baird out of the hospital, the functional count stands near 218–213 for Republicans, and the Jan. 31 Houston special election is expected to narrow the margin to about 218–214 once the winner is seated.
- GOP leaders are pressing attendance and discouraging further resignations, while Democrats and experts say a numerical flip could trigger a speakership fight that Johnson might try to forestall by recessing the House.