The perpetually too-online Rep. Nancy Mace, who represents South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, has announced that she is running for the governorship of the Palmetto State. “This isn’t about playing defense, this is about going on offense for you — for your family, for your freedom, and for your future. … I wasn’t built to kiss the ring. I just wear one. I don’t answer to the establishment. I don’t owe those in the back room a single thing. I answer to the people. And the people, let me tell you, are fed up,” Mace said at The Citadel.
The congresswoman enters an already crowded Republican primary that includes Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, state Attorney General Alan Wilson, and Rep. Ralph Norman, who represents South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District.
The primary is expected to get personal, as Mace has already attacked Wilson in a speech from the House floor in February, where she accused several men, including her ex-fiance, of rape and sex trafficking, among other alleged crimes, and accused Wilson of failing to prosecute the men. Wilson’s office says they have never received a report from Mace or anybody else, nor have they received a request for assistance from law enforcement or prosecutorial agencies. All four men who were accused of crimes have vehemently denied them.
There is no way to know if Mace is telling the truth about being a victim of these alleged crimes, but Mace’s character was called into question in May 2021 when she claimed that the street communist group antifa had vandalized her Charleston area home. No link was found to any specific group, and observers pointed out that the graffiti closely resembled Mace’s own handwriting and that the alleged vandals only tagged easily washable surfaces, among other discrepancies that raised skepticism.
The winner of the Republican primary will almost certainly replace term-limited Republican Gov. Henry McMaster in the deep red state. However, Mace’s obnoxious, attention-seeking internet branding strategy and obsession with diving headfirst into divisive cultural issues is more effective when you’re representing a single deep red congressional district — or a deep blue district in the case of someone like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) — than if you are tasked with governing a state of 5.5 million citizens. Mace is also 12 years older than Ocasio-Cortez, which makes her insistence on posting provocative photos of herself come off as even more childish and ridiculous.
There are also more substantive reasons to oppose a Mace nomination for governor. Mace initially condemned President Donald Trump for the Jan. 6 riot before changing her tune for political reasons and taking a page out of the Democratic playbook by attacking colleague Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) on accusations of racism. Mace is weak on abortion and criticized Florida’s “heartbeat bill” in favor of a 15-20 week abortion ban. The congresswoman also took the Democratic bait on gun control. After a mass shooting in Nashville in 2023, Mace called for expanded background checks and red flag laws.
THE GOP IS RIGHT TO SCUTTLE MARJORIE TAYLOR-GREENE’S POLITICAL AMBITIONS
As the GOP seeks to normalize the culture surrounding gender issues, specifically restoring traditional male and female-specific spaces, Nancy Mace rarely misses an opportunity to brag about being the first woman to graduate from The Citadel.
There are more serious and more conservative candidates running to be the next governor of South Carolina, and the Republican nominee will win the general election next November regardless of the candidate. Our body politic needs a great many things at this juncture, but more Nancy Mace is certainly not one of them.
Brady Leonard (@bradyleonard) is a musician, political strategist, and host of The No Gimmicks Podcast.