Republican lawmaker calls out Trump as he considers South Carolina gubernatorial run: ‘I’m a fighter’
Representative Nancy Mace says that if he moves forward to launch a Republican race for South Carolina governor in 2026, he will seek to “lock in support” President Trump.
“I’ve had President Trump’s endorsement in the House and I’m working hard to secure that endorsement in this race. He said I’m a strong conservative, he knows I’m a fighter,” Mace said Thursday in a statement to Fox News Digital.
A day earlier, Mace took to social media to reiterate what she first told the AP, which was that she was seriously considering a run for governor in the race to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Henry McMaster.
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Rep. Nancy Mace (R-South Carolina) arrives at the House Republican Caucus meeting at the US Capitol on November 19, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
“President Trump needs courageous leaders to implement his agenda in every state across the nation. It will take determination. It will take strength. It will take hard work. I can confirm, affirmatively, that we are considering the 2026 race. South Carolina First,” Mace said in her post on social networks.
Mace, who was first elected to the House of Representatives in the 2020 election, did not vote to impeach Trump for incitement on January 6, 2021. you storm the US Capitol by right-wing extremists and other Trump supporters intent on disrupting the congressional certification of former President Biden’s 2020 election victory.
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But she later blamed Trump for the attack on the US capital, and in 2022 she faced – but survived – a Republican primary against a Trump-backed rival.
Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina speaks to supporters at a campaign event in Summerville, SC on June 12, 2022. (Fox News)
Mace endorsed the former president as he ran for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination and campaigned for him in South Carolina crucial early voting of the presidential primaries.
Trump returned the favor, endorsing Mace as she ran for re-election last year.
Mace told Fox News Digital that “I have proven my leadership, from the state legislature to Washington, my bold conservative policies are rooted in the Constitution, liberty, small government and common sense.”
“I believe in a government small enough to fit into the Constitution,” she added.
And Mace emphasized that “I’m kicking– and carrying names from South Carolina to DC and back. That’s the leadership the Palmetto State is looking for.”
Mace recently made headlines by introducing a resolution barring transgender women from using women’s bathrooms in the U.S. Capitol or adjacent House office buildings. This is a question of great interest to many voters on the right.
Rep. Nancy Mace speaks on Day 3 of the Republican National Convention, at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 17, 2024. (REUTERS/Mike Segar)
Trump is very popular in South Carolina, which is dominated by Republicans, and has the support of the Republican Party gubernatorial primary he would be immensely influential among the state’s conservative electorate.
Attorney General Alan Wilson, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and state senators Josh Kimbrell and Sean Bennett are among those also considering runs for governor.
It’s going to be a crowded field, veteran South Carolina-based Republican consultant Dave Wilson told Fox News. “There will be a lot of people throwing their hat in the ring.”
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“It’s going to be a battle of the conservatives — how conservative can you be in South Carolina,” Wilson emphasized.
McMaster, another key Trump ally, is on track to become South Carolina’s longest-serving governor. The then lieutenant governor succeeded Gov. Nikki Haley in 2017 when she stepped down to become ambassador to the United Nations in Trump’s first term. McMaster won election in 2018 to a full four-year term and re-election in 2022.
