Even though he admits he doesn't have a chance of winning, a North Carolina Democrat says he is going to challenge outgoing Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi in her bid to remain a leader on the minority side of the house.
Rep. Heath Shuler told MSNBC's Morning Joe Monday that he will run against the San Francisco representative if she indeed runs for Minority Leader. He told John King on CNN that he's doing it so Democrats will have a non-liberal option.
"If it comes down to this coming week, and she doesn’t step aside, then I will challenge her," Shuler told CNN Sunday.
Shuler said he doesn't think he has the votes, but political experts say he will probably get at least a few from Democrats looking for a change in direction. Some of them have told Pelosi personally someone else should be elected because they say she has become too polarizing of a national figure.
On Nov. 2 Democrats lost their majority in the House, which meant Pelosi lost her speaker seat. Pelosi told NPR, "We didn't lose the election because of me." Adding, the Democrats "asked me to run. I'm running." Pelosi would not name exactly who asked her to run.
The San Francisco representative surprised some in Washington by announcing on Twitter that she planned to run for the post of minority leader in the new Congress.
Today, Pelosi remains House speaker, which is second in line to the presidency.
