Overview
- Christian Menefee took the oath to represent Houston’s 18th District after 334 days without a member, restoring the district’s voice in Congress.
- The narrower 218–214 split means Speaker Mike Johnson can lose only one Republican on party-line votes, with a key funding measure expected to come to the floor.
- A small group of Republicans, including Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, has threatened to slow floor action tied to reopening the government over demands on a voter ID measure.
- Three House seats remain vacant in New Jersey’s 11th, Georgia’s 14th, and California’s 1st, with the earliest potential shift coming after Georgia’s March 10 special election.
- Menefee won Saturday’s runoff 68% to 31% over Amanda Edwards on very low turnout, as Democrats also flipped Texas Senate District 9 by about 14 points, prompting GOP officials to call the Tarrant County result a wake-up call for November.