Allies of Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., are calling on President-elect Trump to publicly reiterate his support for the House Republican leader to avoid a messy, drawn-out fight that could delay the certification of his own victory.

“If we have a protracted battle where we cannot elect a speaker, the speaker is not elected; We are not sworn in. And if we are not sworn in, we cannot certify the election,” Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., told Fox News Digital.

“I would hope that President Trump would step in and talk to those who might be a little hesitant and say, ‘We’ve got to get going. We don’t have time.’”

Meanwhile, Texas Rep. Pat Fallon told Fox News Digital: “It would be extremely helpful” if Trump got involved.

Top Trump aides join group as they prepare to bolster support for MAGA agenda

“Any time would be great, but right after Christmas, if President Trump said, ‘You know, listen’ – it would actually be really cool if Mike Johnson somehow ended up at Mar-a-Lago for Christmas… wherever that is President is.” Fallon said. “I think it would be incredibly powerful.”

House Democrats return to Washington, D.C. for a full chamber vote on the choice of speaker on Friday, January 3rd. Just days later, on Monday, January 6, the House of Representatives will meet to certify the results of the 2024 election.

Johnson faces a potentially bitter battle to win the gavel for a full term in Congress, with several House Republicans vocally criticizing the Louisiana Republican and his handling of state funds.

His predecessor suffered 14 public defeats in his bid to win the gavel, finally securing it on the 15th vote in the full House of Representatives after days of negotiations with holdouts.

When he was ousted, Johnson won after a three-week Republican battle that paralyzed Congress for the duration.

But some House Republicans are now warning that they can ill afford delays in the first 100 days of his second term, which Trump himself has said will be very active.

“To ensure that President Trump can take office and begin work on January 20th, we must be able to certify the 2024 election on January 6th. However, without a speaker, we cannot complete this process,” Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., told Fox News Digital.

Tenney warned that this could delay “the launch of his agenda.”

Congress averted a partial government shutdown just hours after the Dec. 20 federal funding deadline by passing a bill extending that deadline to March 14, while also extending several other key programs and replenishing the FEMA disaster relief fund.

It angered Republican Party hardliners who opposed the addition of independent political players to what they saw as an easier extension of government funding.

Johnson also tried to accede to Trump’s demand to link debt limit measures – which had been suspended until January 2025 – to his government funding bill after 38 House Republicans and all but two Democrats voted against it.

Fallon told Fox News Digital that this doesn’t necessarily mean they would oppose Trump if he supported Johnson again before January 3.

“Some of the people in the 38s – this was more of a policy thing…they really want to attack the debt,” Fallon said. “They felt like they could just let the debt ceiling expire for two years… they like to use that as a negotiating tool to say, ‘Let’s reduce the debt ratio.’

The Senate passes a bill to end the shutdown and sends it to President Biden’s desk

But one of Johnson’s biggest critics, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, has already told reporters he won’t vote for Johnson next year.

Two others, House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., and Rep. Michael Cloud, R-Texas, indicated over the weekend that they would no longer commit to supporting Johnson.

Meanwhile, there were media reports that Trump was unhappy with the way Johnson handled government financing and that his calls for a debt limit were ignored.

Trump himself has not publicly mentioned Johnson since Friday’s vote. But top Trump allies, like Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, have come to Johnson’s defense.

“He is without a doubt the most conservative speaker of the House we have had in our lifetime,” Cruz said on his podcast “The Verdict.” “If Mike Johnson is ousted as Speaker of the House, we will end up with a Speaker of the House who is much, much more liberal than Mike Johnson.”

Others have also signaled that Trump’s influence will have a big impact on what ultimately happens.

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A House Republican, granted anonymity and free to speak, told Fox News Digital early last week that he was considering opposing Johnson but said Trump was the final deciding factor.

“I think ultimately it will be decided who President Trump likes because I think that will have a big impact on the decision making because right now President Trump is working very well with Mike Johnson. They have a great relationship.” Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., told CNN’s “State of the Union.”

Asked whether he would support Johnson if Trump did so despite opposing his government funding plans, Burchett replied: “Possibly.”

Johnson will run in the Jan. 3 speaker election with a narrow three-vote lead over Republicans — and is virtually unlikely to win Democratic support.