McCarthy: Pelosi is 10 Democratic votes away from losing House speaker race

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With Republicans adding House seats in the 2020 election, House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., told “Sunday Morning Futures” that it would only take 10 Democrats to block Nancy Pelosi from being reelected as House speaker.

McCarthy made the comments after his party flipped at least seven seats from blue to red and an eighth seat in Michigan that was most recently occupied by a Libertarian.

Pelosi has announced her bid for reelection as speaker, but McCarthy said that is not a sure thing with the slimmer Democratic majority.

“To become speaker, you have to have 218 votes on the floor,” he explained. “When she went up for that vote two years ago, there were 15 Democrats who voted against her. Ten of those Democrats will be coming back to Congress. If those 10 vote against her again, she will not be speaker of the House ... because of the gains of the Republicans.”

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“We are close enough now that we can control the floor with a few Democrats joining with us,” he said.

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Pelosi defended the 2020 results, saying Democrats "lost some battles, but we won the war."

McCarthy said America is rejecting socialism by voting in Republicans across the nation and specifically electing GOP women in states like California, Florida and New York – setting a record number of women elected.

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“We won by Republican women winning,” he said. “That says something about what President Trump has been able to do – to expand this party, bring diversity, and that brings strength. The same thing that brings strength to America, diversity, is now in the Republican Party as well."