Trump's biggest GOP critic in Congress became his MAGA biggest fan. Now he could lose her to governor bid
'I will be making a decision over the next couple of days about my future,' Mace said during a weekend interview on Fox. 'I believe I may be forced to run for governor because I can't watch my beautiful red state of South Carolina go woke. It's gone woke over the last couple of years.'
Mace, who was first elected to Congress in 2020 when she beat an incumbent Democrat, on Monday posted on X that she had a 'big announcement.'
Since the end of last year, Mace has become one of the most outspoken voices against transgender people. When Sarah McBride became the first openly transgender person elected to Congress, Mace attempted to have her banned from using the restroom on Capitol Hill. This came despite the fact that in the past, Mace supported LGBTQ+ rights and was one of a handful of Republicans who voted for legislation to codify protections for same-sex and interracial married couples in 2022.
That reflects a larger shift Mace had. In 2023, she spoke with The Independent and said that when it came to abortion, Republicans were 'not going to win hearts and minds over by being a**holes to women.'
Mace billed herself as a moderate on abortion, supporting exceptions for rape and incest. She described her experiences as a rape survivor who dropped out of high school before working at a Waffle House while working on her GED before becoming the first woman to graduate from the Citadel, a prestigious military academy.
She also clashed with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), the right-wing firebrand congresswoman who has regularly promoted conspiracy theories, saying 'bless her f***ing heart.'
In the days after the January 6 riot at the Capitol, Mace opposed impeaching Trump but criticized his actions, but blamed him for the riot. Trump then endorsed her primary opponent Katie Arrington in the 2022 primary.
That signaled a change. After Trump endorsed Arrington, Mace posted a video of herself in front of Trump Tower, which Trump roundly mocked.
In addition, after initially backing Kevin McCarthy to become speaker of the House, she joined Matt Gaetz in his coup with six other Republicans and every Democrat in 2023. In 2024, she endorsed Trump and spoke at the Republican National Convention.
Mace voted earlier this month for Trump's One Big, Beautiful Bill Act and filmed videos of herself driving up to Washington in her pajamas to vote for it. When The Independent asked her about how states would have to shoulder more the cost of the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, because of the bill, she said 'my policy is, if you're an able-bodied person and you want Medicaid? Get a f***ing job.'
But Mace's legislative record is relatively thin. In her time in Washington, she only authored one piece of legislation that passed, which renamed a post office in Hilton Head.
Mace faces a competitive primary against Attorney General Alan Wilson and Rep. Ralph Norman, a member of the archconservative House Freedom Caucus that usually initially opposes Republican legislation before ultimately folding and voting for Trump's legislation. Current Governor Henry McMaster is term-limited.
Mace already clashed with Wilson in February, when she delivered a speech on the floor of the House earlier this year and accused her ex-fiancé and three other men of sex crimes. During that speech, she accused Wilson of failing to act on her accusations. But Wilson responded by saying that the accusations never made it to his office.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
20 minutes ago
- Reuters
Texas Democrats seek to block redistricting vote by leaving state
Aug 3 (Reuters) - Democratic lawmakers in Texas said on Sunday they were leaving the state to deny Republicans the quorum needed to redraw the state's 38 congressional districts, a move sought to protect the Republicans' narrow U.S. House majority in next year's midterm elections. President Donald Trump has championed the redistricting plan, telling reporters he expects the effort to yield as many as five additional House Republicans. Republicans hold a narrow 220-212 majority in the House of Representatives, with three Democratic-held seats vacant after members' deaths. In a video shot in front of an airport, opens new tab, Democratic Representative James Talarico said the redistricting plan amounted to "rigging" the 2026 elections. "If you're seeing this video, my Democratic colleagues and I have just left our beloved state to break quorum and stop Trump's redistricting power grab," Talarico said in the video posted on X on Sunday. Several other Texas Democrats said on X they were headed to Illinois, whose governor is Democrat J.B. Pritzker. States are required to redistrict every 10 years based on the U.S. Census but the Texas map was passed just four years ago by the Republican-dominated legislature. While mid-cycle redistricting occasionally takes place, it is usually prompted by a change in power at the legislature. Republicans have pursued redistricting in a special legislative session that will also address funding for flood prevention in the wake of the deadly July 4 flash flooding that killed more than 130. Under the current lines, Republicans control 25 seats, nearly two-thirds of the districts in a state that went for Trump last year by a 56% to 42% margin. Redistricting experts have said the plan could backfire if Republicans try to squeeze too many seats out of what is already considered a significantly skewed map. Republican Governor Greg Abbott's office did not respond to a request for comment about the Democrats' move on Sunday.
BBC News
20 minutes ago
- BBC News
Democrats flee Texas to block Republican redistricting map backed by Trump
Democratic state lawmakers have fled Texas in an attempt to stop a vote on a new congressional map that would heavily favour map, unveiled by Texas Republicans earlier in the week and backed by President Donald Trump, contains redrawn districts that would help preserve the party's slim majority in the US House of Representatives of the 150-member Texas House must be present in order to hold a vote. Fifty-one Democratic lawmakers have fled to Chicago, denying Republicans the required said they plan to stay away for two weeks until the end of a special legislative session convened by Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott to hold the vote. Each of the 51 lawmakers could face a $500 (£380) fine for each day they are away, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, had previously threatened to arrest legislators who break quorum. In a statement to media, Texas Democrats defended the move."We're not walking out on our responsibilities," said Texas state legislator and chairman of the Democratic caucus Gene Wu. "We're walking out on a rigged system that refuses to listen to the people we represent."The redrawn map could win Republicans five more congressional seats in areas where Trump had made gains during the 2024 presidential includes a redistricting of the Rio Grande Valley, as well as combining two Austin districts currently held by Democrats. In northern Texas, the new map would expand a district currently held by Democratic House representative Julie Johnson to include rural Republican strongholds. It would also redraw four Houston-area seats, including one held by Democratic congressman Al Green.
Daily Mail
20 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Texas GOP jabs at Jasmine Crockett with their proposed new map... as she calls spiteful move a 'red flag'
Firebrand Democrat Jasmine Crockett faces being booted from Congress after Republicans proposed a heavily gerrymandered redistricting map that would mean she no longer lives in her district. Crockett has made headlines numerous times in recent months as a key critic of the Trump administration, and the redistricting issue is the latest one she has spoken out on. She has slammed the Texas redistricting maps as a sham that silences minority voices and keeps power in the hands of the few, diluting the voting power of Latino and Black communities. The redistricting push in Texas was spurred by a letter from the U.S. Department of Justice sent to state officials in July, which argued that four of the state's congressional districts were racially gerrymandered. Democrats won all four of these seats in the 2024 elections. President Donald Trump then urged Texas Republicans to rethink their Congressional maps to give Republicans a leg up in next year's midterm elections. Texas Rep. Todd Hunter, the Republican author of the bill pushing the new maps, described the new proposed carveouts in the following way: 'It is important to note that four of the five new districts are majority minority, Hispanic. … Each of these newly drawn districts now trends Republican,' Hunter said. 'Political performance doesn't guarantee electoral success; that's up to the candidates. But it does allow Republican candidates the opportunity to compete in these districts.' Crockett called Trump 'Temu Hitler' in a recent interview with SiriusXM host Zerlina Maxwell, due to the president's involvement in the redistricting process. 'So what we have seen is, again, this rogue Department of Justice going out to do the bidding of this Temu Hitler,' Crockett told Maxwell in July. Crockett also added that in her view, Trump believes that the only way to 'ensure that [he] will have no checks on [him] is if [he] can ensure that those voices of color do not have representation.' The Texas congressional maps were already redrawn after the 2020 Census, and they are typically edited every ten years. US Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) speaks during a "Oversight and Government Reform" hearing on Capitol Hill, in Washington, DC, on February 12, 2025 After the Friday hearings on the proposed new maps, the Republicans on the Texas House Select Committee on Congressional Redistricting voted to advance House Bill 4 on a party-line vote. Democrats plan to stall a vote on the legislation by the full chamber by not showing up. A full chamber vote could happen as soon as Tuesday. 100 members of the Texas House are needed to conduct business, and Republicans hold 88 seats in the body. 62 seats are held by Democrats. Lawmakers could be fined $500 a day if they refuse to come to work, per a rule adopted in 2021 after Texas Democrats pulled a similar move to postpone another voting bill. Regardless of the creation of the new maps, Crockett's time in the U.S. House of Representatives may be coming to an end soon. In a July interview with liberal comedian and media personality Hasan Minhaj, Crockett noted that she already has her 'expiration date in mind for the House,' adding that she already has 'been eyeing people to replace' her. Polling released by the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) last month showed Democrat Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett leading a hypothetical Democratic primary with 35 percent of likely voters, followed by former Rep. Colin Allred at 20 percent. Failed Democrat candidate for both U.S. President and U.S. Senate Beto O'Rourke, and Rep. Joaquin Castro tied in that poll at 13 percent. Only 18 percent of respondents to the poll remained undecided about who should challenge Republican Sen. John Cornyn, who is seeking a fifth term.
