The GOP leader began moving into the speaker’s office in the Capitol after outgoing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently vacated the office, according to The Hill. Then as he walked out of the office on Monday, McCarthy was asked by reporters whether he managed to secure the votes to win the speakership on Tuesday.

“And take away all the excitement?” McCarthy responded, adding, “I think we will have a good day tomorrow,” according to a video posted to Twitter by NBC News reporter Haley Talbot.

McCarthy was nominated by House Republicans in a 188-31 vote by secret ballot for speaker—a significant role that is second in line of succession for the presidency after the vice president in case the commander in chief is incapacitated.

McCarthy announced his speakership bid after his party narrowly won the House majority in November’s midterm elections. But he has since faced fierce criticism from some conservative GOP members who might stand in the way of a victory.

Some of his toughest critics include Florida Representative Matt Gaetz, who doesn’t want him to become speaker because he claims that the California Republican is not fully complying with GOP values and the party’s agenda.

Meanwhile, other fellow Republicans such as Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell pledged their support for his speakership bid.

Still, in order to become speaker, McCarthy has to secure support from right-wing social conservatives as well as from more moderate Republicans representing districts that President Joe Biden won in 2020.

How Can McCarthy Secure the Gavel?

McCarthy needs 218 votes—one more than half of the 434 members of the House if all members are present and voting—to win the speakership. Still, lawmakers can skip the vote, or vote “present,” which would then decrease the vote threshold required to win the gavel.

In a hypothetical scenario presented by USA Today in which McCarthy secures 216 votes, while a Democratic candidate has 212 votes, and six representatives vote for someone else, he would still not win the speakership despite having a plurality.

But if those six representatives refrain from voting for someone else, then they don’t count toward the votes required, reducing the total votes cast to 428, which then means that McCarthy could win with his 216 votes, the newspaper reported.

The House total of 434 members is one short of its usual 435 due to the death of Virginia Representative Donald McEachin in November.

Why Some Republicans Don’t Want McCarthy to Be House Speaker

Gaetz previously said that he will not vote for McCarthy because there are things that the California Republican did “to erode the trust of the members he needs to vote for him if he wants to be speaker.”

Additionally, Gaetz blamed McCarthy for not blocking Democrats from passing budget bills, pushing for immigration bills that included amnesty and not doing enough to hold accountable officials who opposed former President Donald Trump.

Meanwhile, last month, seven House Republicans sent McCarthy a letter listing their demands in exchange for their support.

Their demands included a return to single subject bills, 72 hours for a final bill text, leadership not getting involved in primary elections, the appointment of conservative Republicans on the House Rules Committee and a commitment to not raising the debt ceiling.

McCarthy also faced some pushback from Republicans who are against his promise to block some lawmakers from serving on their committees. McCarthy repeatedly vowed that he would remove California Representatives Eric Swalwell and Adam Schiff, who both serve on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar, who serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Representatives Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Andy Barr of Kentucky stated that they opposed such a move.

Former White House adviser Steve Bannon told Newsweek on Saturday about some of the possible reasons why some GOP lawmakers are still criticizing McCarthy.

“The issue with Kevin, it’s not that people don’t like him—Kevin is very well-liked. It has nothing to do with that,” Bannon said. “It has to do with really, what does the Republican Party stand for—what does MAGA stand for and how we’re going to sort this situation out.” (MAGA is an acronym for “Make America great again,” which Trump repeatedly used at his rallies as a campaign slogan.)

Bannon added that one of the big concerns that McCarthy’s critics have is what he really stands for.

“Over the last 48, 72 hours, people are saying, ‘Well hold it. This guy is prepared to give away things he’d never said [he would],’” Bannon said.

McCarthy’s Latest Attempt to Secure Votes

McCarthy recently offered his greatest concession to the GOP caucus by supporting a move making it easier to remove a sitting House speaker—a move he has long opposed.

McCarthy agreed Sunday evening to reduce the threshold to push for a floor vote, known as the motion to vacate. He confirmed that there would be the opportunity to “vacate the chair” if five House Republicans support such a motion. Currently, a majority of the House GOP is required to call for such a move.

Newsweek reached out to the Republican National Committee for comment.