Representative Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) threw her support behind state Attorney General Alan Wilson in the Palmetto State's Republican gubernatorial primary on Tuesday night, shortly after her own bid for the office fell short. Mace, who placed fifth in the initial primary, told supporters that Wilson is the law-and-order candidate the state needs.
“I want you to know that I’m going to endorse Alan Wilson for governor,” Mace said. “I want a law-and-order governor, and that law-and-order governor is going to be Alan Wilson.” She added that she expects Wilson to “mop the floor” with Lieutenant Governor Pamela Evette, who has received former President Donald Trump’s endorsement.
With no candidate securing more than 50 percent of the vote, Wilson and Evette are set to face off in a June 23 runoff, as the race heads to a second round. Mace’s endorsement is a notable reversal, given that she had previously criticized Wilson over his handling of a sex offender case, suggesting that “if you’re a pedophile, you definitely want Alan Wilson to prosecute your case.”
Wilson acknowledged the past friction, telling his own supporters that he and Mace have “buried our hatchet” in recent days. He thanked her for the endorsement and stressed unity within the party as the runoff approaches.
Mace, a sexual assault survivor, has been a controversial figure in Congress, known for bucking her party on issues like abortion and for being among the small group of House Republicans who voted to oust then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023. She has also closely aligned herself with Trump, though she defeated a Trump-backed challenger in her 2022 reelection bid.
Her push for the Justice Department to release files related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein may have cost her in the gubernatorial race. Mace acknowledged that her advocacy likely hurt her campaign, but she has no regrets. “I voted to release the Epstein files. NO REGRETS,” she wrote on social media after Trump backed Evette. “I demanded it because you deserved the truth – ALL OF IT – and as a survivor of a corrupt and broken court system, I will always pursue justice for those who deserve it. If sacrificing my values is the price of an endorsement, I will never pay it.”
The runoff between Wilson and Evette will test Trump’s influence in South Carolina, as the former president’s endorsement has not yet sealed the race. The outcome could also reshape the state’s political landscape, with Senator Lindsey Graham easily securing his party’s nomination earlier in the night.
