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CHARLESTON, S.C. -- South Carolina Rep. Tim Scott, the Tea Party favorite who has been angling to play an influential role in the Republican presidential race, predicts Newt Gingrich will win the Palmetto State primary on Saturday.

"There's no question: Newt. I think Newt will probably finish first in South Carolina, as of the information I have now," Scott said Friday. His assessment came in a brief interview with RealClearPolitics as the freshman lawmaker made his way to one of the many television appearances he has scheduled around this coastal city on the eve of voting.

Gingrich has crept past Mitt Romney in South Carolina, leading by one point in the RealClearPolitics average. He stole the show at the GOP presidential debate Thursday night by launching into an anti-media diatribe after being asked about allegations made by his ex-wife that he once requested an "open marriage."

But Scott, who has just one day left to get behind a candidate before Saturday's primary, said his upcoming endorsement "won't be based on who can win South Carolina; my decision will be based on who can win the presidency."

Elected in 2010 and a central figure within the House’s Tea Party faction, Scott has hosted each of the candidates (except Ron Paul) at his First in the South Presidential Town Hall Series. Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, who endorsed Romney on Friday morning, was the town hall guest last week -- another sign that he might be part of the vice presidential sweepstakes.

Using the publicity from these town halls as a springboard, Scott launched his own political action committee this week to support various candidates, boost their Tea Party credentials and help with messaging, something Scott thinks his party needs to do better.

Republicans have struggled to settle on a conservative alternative to Romney, which has become a prominent theme of this cycle. Asked whether the Tea Party is having the impact he wanted for it during this election, Scott said the movement is being represented in a different way than before.

Candidates "are now [saying to] the Tea Party, 'Take my resume, give me an interview, and let me tell you why I'm your guy,' which makes the Tea Party far more powerful in the election process than they have ever been before," he said. But Scott insisted he isn't concerned that the Tea Party has yet to coalesce around a single presidential candidate – which some observers see as a sign that the movement's strength is diminishing.

"I believe they don't need to choose a candidate for the primary -- one candidate. I believe they need to split their votes . . . in the camps where they want to be and get ready for the rumble in the jungle, starting in November 2012, when we elect a new president," he said. "That’s when the Tea Party's strength will be seen, will be felt. "