Former chief of staff of Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., is considering a primary lawsuit against his former boss after a recent exodus from staffers who blamed a toxic work environment.

Dan Hanlon, who resigned last month, is now trying to find a new home for the office popcorn maker he brought with him. He has been meeting with potential donors and campaign staff ever since. This is a surprising turn of events, after Mace, the notoriously unpredictable Mace, was under scrutiny by staffers due to his problematic behavior.

Mace’s representative did not respond to a comment request.

People familiar with the discussions say that Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., who promised to offer Hanlon a position during a fiery press conference after Mace’s decision to remove McCarthy from his post as Speaker of the House in response to Mace voting to remove McCarthy, encouraged Hanlon privately to consider a primary challenge.

Politico first reported this news. “Hanlon is pleased with the reception of the idea and the number of people looking for an alternative to Mace, both in D.C. money people and in S.C.,” said a Republican who was familiar with Hanlon’s decision-making processes. Former Mace staffer, who spoke to The Washington Post, said that Hanlon had been urged to take action against Mace by people in South Carolina and on Capitol Hill as Hanlon became more difficult to work with.

Hanlon has until March 30 to file for candidacy in South Carolina. However, he can begin collecting money from supporters as soon as possible.

Mace was criticized for her conduct in a number of negative reports. One included an examination of Mace’s 98-page manual, which instructed staff to only serve her water at room temperature and to remove Mace from meetings with constituents that lasted more than three minutes. It also detailed booking quotas that Mace had set up on cable news channels. Her colleagues have called her a “narcissist”, complained about her repeated contradictions between public statements and her private reversals and criticized her for her perceived lack of moral compass.

Hanlon is not alone in his disillusionment. Mace, meanwhile, has been struggling to fill her office.

Hanlon has been working in Republican politics for South Carolinian Members for more than a decade. “Unlike Mace, who uses crass remarks about her sex-life to get into the news cycle,” said a former Mace employee, referring to Mace’s statement at a Prayer Breakfast about refusing her then-fiancee’s advances before the event.