Congressman Mike Johnson has been selected as the Republican party’s latest nominee for House Speaker.

As the second nominee of the day, he is the fourth nominee put forward after three others failed to garner enough support from colleagues.

A three-round voting process ended on Tuesday with Mr Johnson being selected.

After Kevin McCarthy was ousted on 3 October, the House has been without a Speaker and unable to pass bills.

House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik announced the selection of Louisiana’s Mr Johnson, 51.

In the lower chamber of Congress, Republicans only hold a narrow majority over Democrats, so their nominee can only afford to lose a handful of votes.

Following the withdrawal of the previous nominee, Majority Whip Tom Emmer, Mr Johnson’s nomination came only hours later.

A simple majority in the House is needed for Mr Johnson to win the gavel, and it remains unclear whether he will have those 217 votes.

Former President Donald Trump spoke out against Mr Johnson earlier in the day, causing him to withdraw from the race. Mr Johnson came in second to Mr Emmer earlier on Tuesday, before the Minnesota representative withdrew from the race.

Mr Johnson received 128 votes in the final round of voting, while Congressman Byron Donald received 29 votes.

House members are expected to vote on Mr Johnson’s nomination as early as Wednesday afternoon. The Republicans will have to start all over again if he does not succeed.