Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) on Monday announced she is running for governor of South Carolina, joining a competitive field of GOP candidates to succeed outgoing Gov. Henry McMaster (R), who is term-limited.
In a speech at the Citadel military college in Charleston, her alma mater, Mace, who is currently serving her third term in the U.S. House of Representatives, said she was ready to make her long-anticipated gubernatorial bid official.
“South Carolina is tired of politicians who smile for the cameras, lie to your face and then vanish when it’s time to lead,” she said. “I’m not one of them. I’m running for governor because South Carolina doesn’t need another empty suit, and needs a governor who will fight for you and your values.”
Mace has yet to secure Trump’s support but has made it clear that she would fight for his endorsement.
“I’ll be working very hard if I get in to earn his support,” she said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital.
Mace also included an old clip of Trump calling her a “fighter” in her campaign announcement video posted on social media.
Mace, who was first elected to Congress in 2020, criticized Trump’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, telling Fox News at the time that “every accomplishment that the president had over the past four years has been wiped out.” Mace also voted to certify former President Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election, earning Trump’s rebuke.
However, after Mace managed to defeat her Trump-endorsed opponent in the 2022 GOP primary for her House seat, and went on to win the general election, she eventually made peace with the president, becoming one of his staunchest supporters in the House. She endorsed him in the 2024 presidential race and has even described herself as “Trump in high heels.”
Mace has also been one of the faces of the GOP’s assault on transgender Americans, despite once calling herself “pro-transgender rights.” She has launched a series of attacks against Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), the first transgender member of Congress, misgendering her colleague, mocking her on social media and trying to block her from using single-sex bathrooms in the Capitol.
On Monday, Mace made clear she has no plans to abandon her divisive rhetoric as part of her new campaign.
“We are going to ban pronouns in the classroom. I don’t want to see any glitter parties. I want kids coming home with A’s and B’s, not they and them,” she said.
Other GOP candidates who will compete against Mace include state Attorney General Alan Wilson, U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, Lieutenant Gov. Pamela Evette and state Sen. Josh Kimbrell. The winner of the GOP gubernatorial primary is widely expected to go on to win the general election in the solidly red state, which went for Trump in 2016, 2020 and 2024.
Mace has previously accused her ex-fiancé and three other men of committing sex crimes against her and other women. All four men denied her allegations to NBC News.
Mace also accused Wilson of failing to take action after she reached out to his office with the allegations. Wilson denied her accusations regarding his conduct as “categorically false.”
