(NewsNation) — The political battle to be the next House speaker is already brewing inside the GOP. While California Rep. Kevin McCarthy is the current front-runner, some in the conservative wing of the party are hoping for different leadership.
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz is among those leading the charge against McCarthy, tweeting on Christmas Eve that all he wants for Christmas is for Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan to run against McCarthy for speaker of the House.
Republican strategist Melik Abdul joined “NewsNation Live” to analyze the fight for leadership in the Republican Party.
Abdul said that while he likes Jordan, he expects McCarthy to win House speaker.
“I don’t think that Jim Jordan will mount any sort of challenge to Kevin McCarthy because he does play ball at the end of the game,” Abdul said.
However, Abdul said he thinks Republicans have to have this fight, saying it is a healthy conversation for them to have. He hopes that some of the voices that Jim Jordan represents feel that they are having a voice in the conversation and that the party represents their needs.
Watch Melik Abduk’s full interview in the player above.