Washington ? Democrats sought election-year gain Thursday from Majority Leader Tom DeLay’s latest brush with the House ethics committee, while the powerful Texas lawmaker drew widespread expressions of support from fellow Republicans.

Republicans must decide “do they want an ethically unfit person to be their majority leader, or do they want to remove the ethical cloud that hangs over the Capitol?” said California Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leader.

As Pelosi challenged the GOP, the Democrats’ campaign committee attacked Connecticut Rep. Chris Shays, a prominent GOP moderate, for recently praising DeLay’s performance as leader.

Despite the numerous Republican lawmakers who volunteered support for DeLay, there were murmurs of discontent within the GOP ranks.

“There’s an evaluation under way … as to whether now is the time for new leadership,” said Rep. Zach Wamp of Tennessee, who quickly added that he believed support for Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., “transcends all this.”

“Every now and then you have to go through re-evaluation and renewal,” Wamp said. He said he was referring to a scheduled mid-November meeting at which GOP lawmakers will select their leaders for the Congress that convenes in 2005.

Less than one month before Election Day, DeLay drew solid expressions of support from GOP leaders.

“Tom DeLay is a good man. He fights hard for what he believes, but he has never put personal interests ahead of the best interests of the country,” Hastert said in a statement shortly after the ethics committee’s latest action was announced Wednesday night.

While Pelosi stopped short of calling on DeLay to give up his leadership post, the House’s second-ranking Democrat, Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, said DeLay should step aside.

So, too, said some outside groups, including Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group. DeLay has “repeatedly abused the public trust. … He ought to consider retiring to private life,” said Tom Fitton, Judicial Watch’s president.