US lawmakers are discussing digital assets and the House has a new speaker

Members of the US House of Representatives have elected Mike Johnson as the body's next speaker – the second-in-command of the US presidency and the most powerful man in Congress.

In the Oct. 25 vote, all 220 Republicans in the House voted for Johnson, while 209 Democrats voted for Representative Hakeem Jeffries. The election marks the first time in more than three weeks that a government body has clearly established leadership. Representative Patrick McHenry has been serving as interim speaker since Oct. 3 after a vote to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Unlike other candidates who have been chosen as speakers, Representative Johnson's views on crypto are largely unknown. Many in the space were hoping that Rep. Tom Emmer — an environmental advocate for digital assets in Congress — would emerge victorious. However, the campaign was only held for a few hours following former US President Donald Trump's statement urging hard-line Republicans not to support him.

According to @coinbase , new candidate House Speaker @RepMikeJohnson's feelings about crypto are “vague” because he hasn't made any statements yet. pic.twitter.com/5CEKjNkctr

— yuga.eth (@yugacohler) October 25, 2023

Related: US Congress remains legislatively paralyzed on crypto bills without House Speaker

While McHenry was busy preparing for the House vote, Financial Services Committee Vice Chair Francis Hill chaired a subcommittee hearing on “Modernizing Financial Services Through Innovation and Competition.” The hearing focused on discussions around crypto-related laws, including the Financial Services Innovation Act and the Customer Choice in Digital Payments Act.

With Speaker Johnson sworn in, the House of Representatives can bring legislation back to the floor for a voice vote. Lawmakers passed bills out of committee, including the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, the Payment Transparency Stablecoins Act, and the Your Coins Act. However, the House may need to act on a new spending bill before Nov. 17 to resolve the government shutdown.

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