Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) faces significant challenges in her bid for the South Carolina governorship, struggling to secure endorsements from state GOP establishment figures despite her high name recognition.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Mace's volatile personality and history of public confrontations have created reluctance among local party officials to support her candidacy. Her gubernatorial race includes competition from Lieutenant Governor Pamela Evette, Rep. Ralph Norman, and Attorney General Alan Wilson. While Mace leads in name recognition among the field, she simultaneously carries the highest unfavorability ratings in recent polling.
Mace's path to the nomination is complicated by ongoing personal controversies, including a well-documented tirade over airport security details and a contentious breakup with her former fiancé. Despite public appeals, she has failed to secure an endorsement from Donald Trump.
At a recent Clemson-South Carolina football game in Columbia, Wall Street Journal reporter Olivia Beavers conducted conversations with more than two dozen GOP political operatives, donors, and officials. None expressed support for Mace, with the most positive response being "no comment."
Mace's own statements have hindered her campaign. In a recent interview, she remarked, "I don't get invited to parties, I don't have any friends. I have a dog." Austin McCubbin, who recently worked for Mace, criticized this approach: "What she didn't understand is the fundamental reality that politics is the art of relationships. She has no political relationships whatsoever in South Carolina. Why are you running for governor and telling people you have no friends?"
A Trump endorsement appears unlikely, given that Mace led efforts to release the Jeffrey Epstein files—an action for which Trump is known to hold grudges. Some South Carolina Republicans have speculated that if Mace abandons the gubernatorial race, she could pursue her House seat, where approximately a half dozen candidates are already competing in the GOP primary. The filing deadline is scheduled for spring.
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