Republican Rep. Andy Biggs says there are 20 firm “no” votes against House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy becoming Speaker for the next Congress.
Rep. Biggs made the assertion during an interview with the podcast “Conservative Review with Daniel Horowitz.”
Earlier this month, Rep. Biggs had ran against McCarthy for the Speaker nomination, but the House Minority Leader won with a vote of 188-31.
“But McCarthy needs to win 218 votes on Jan. 3, the first day of the next session of Congress, to become Speaker, and Republicans are set to hold only a narrow majority, meaning he cannot afford to lose many votes,” The Hill reports. “All Democrats will likely support their party’s nominee, which will likely be Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). McCarthy warned in an interview with Newsmax on Monday that Democrats could pick the next Speaker if Republicans ‘play games’ on the House floor.”
Biggs and four other Republicans have publicly stated that they will not vote for McCarthy.
“Kevin McCarthy will revert to his establishment mean the moment he gets power, and that’s why there are enough of us now, a critical mass, standing as a bulwark against his ascension to the Speakership,” Gaetz said on former Trump adviser Stephen Bannon’s “War Room” show on Tuesday.
Rep. Gaetz has said that he will not be voting for McCarthy.
Rep. Ralph Norman, Rep. Bob Good, and Rep. Matt Rosendale have also shown opposition to voting for McCarthy.
“I will not be supporting him on Jan. 3,” Rep. Good said on “John Fredericks Radio Show.”
“He admitted there at the mic, though, that he spent money in these races based on who would support him for Speaker,” Good said.