GOP lawmaker vows to support McCarthy in House-wide speaker vote despite pitches from Scalise, Jordan
'I'm still with Kevin McCarthy,' Rep. Carlos Gimenez told Fox News Digital
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}EXCLUSIVE: House GOP Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., will not vote for either of the formally-declared candidates for speaker and will instead back former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., on the House floor, he told Fox News Digital on Tuesday night.
Gimenez has been a steadfast McCarthy ally in the week since his ouster by a majority vote of eight GOP hardliners and every House Democrat.
"I'm still with Kevin McCarthy. I think that what happened to him was a travesty, and I just don't wish to be part of it," Gimenez said. "I’ll continue to vote for Kevin until Kevin tells me that he's no longer a candidate."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}'UNMITIGATED S---SHOW': HOUSE REPUBLICANS FUME OVER SPEAKER VACANCY AMID ISRAEL CRISIS
Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., is among those calling for former Speaker McCarthy to return
He left early during a closed-door House GOP forum where Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., and Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, were making their final pitches before a closed-door conference vote on Wednesday morning to pick Republicans’ new nominee for the gavel.
McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday that he’s asked Republicans not to elect him as a candidate in the closed-door Wednesday vote.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}'SHELL SHOCKED' KEVIN MCCARTHY WILL NOT RUN FOR HOUSE SPEAKER AGAIN FOLLOWING REMOVAL
Gimenez said, "[McCarthy] said, please don't nominate him. That doesn't mean ‘Please don’t vote for me.’"
Two Republicans – Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Steve Scalise of Louisiana – both launched bids for House speaker last week (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
"Scalise and Jordan are going to do exactly the same thing Kevin McCarthy would’ve done. So why change?" he said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Asked why he left the candidate forum early, Gimenez said: "I'm a big fan of movies, but I don't see them over and over again. And I've seen this movie, so I didn't feel like looking at it again."
He said he still intends to attend the Wednesday vote and will again stand behind McCarthy.
McCarthy was ousted by a majority vote of eight Republicans and all House Democrats (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Gimenez also said he believes others will follow suit.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}If enough people do, it could pose a math problem for the GOP — House Republicans have a razor-thin majority. A candidate for speaker can only afford to lose four votes to still clinch a majority needed to be elected for the top job.
House Republicans are still debating whether to raise the threshold needed to pick a candidate for speaker from simple majority of the conference to a 217-House-wide majority.