The prospect of Nancy Mace becoming South Carolina governor has reportedly started to rattle President Trump’s inner circle.
The Republican congresswoman, who enraged Trump’s team by pushing for the release of the Epstein files and criticizing the war in Iran, is polling at 18 percent in the state’s June 9 primary, just one point lower than Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, and ahead of contenders Attorney General Alan Wilson and Rep. Ralph Norman.
One scenario that is keeping the president’s strategists up at night is that no one will win the primary with over 50 percent, forcing a run-off between the two most popular candidates, Axios reports.
If those two candidates were Mace and Norman, the White House would be especially furious, given their histories with Trump.
“Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman sabotaged Trump when it mattered most. Their reward shouldn’t be the governor’s mansion,” one White House source told Axios.
In 2023, Norman endorsed Nikki Haley over Trump, 79, for the 2024 presidential nomination.
Mace’s perceived transgressions are more recent and have caused consternation at the White House, despite the congresswoman asserting that she is MAGA and describing herself as “Trump in heels.”
In March, Mace posted to X that she had “walked out” of a House Armed Services Committee briefing on Iran.
“Let me repeat: I will not support troops on the ground in Iran, even more so after this briefing,” she said.
Mace also said in March that she would “most likely” vote for a resolution to curtail the president’s war with Iran the next time it comes up for a vote, but ultimately did not do so.
Mace also voted for the Epstein Files to be released to the public last fall after reportedly rebuffing efforts by the Trump administration to persuade her to back away from the move.
After the files were released, Mace accused the Justice Department of withholding records and heavily criticized their handling of the matter.
White House aides reportedly pointed to these episodes to explain why they were baffled by Mace seeking an endorsement from the president.
“Nancy has asked for an endorsement countless times, which is confusing considering she teamed up with [Rep. Thomas] Massie to launch a dishonest attack on the administration in regards to the Epstein case,“ one strategist was quoted saying.
Mace has repeatedly framed the Epstein files controversy as a moral issue rather than a political one, saying in February: “I don’t really care what side of the aisle you’re on, right or left, what’s wrong is wrong, you know?”
The president has not yet endorsed a candidate in the race for South Carolina governor. Both Mace and Norman are critical votes for the Republicans in the House, making any endorsement tricky.
