The South Carolina GOP primary will mostly be devoid of drama. Still, all eyes are on the 1st Congressional District, where Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) seeks the renomination against Donald Trump-endorsed Katie Arrington, in yet another test of the former president’s influence within the party.
Arrington won a shocking primary win over Mark Sanford in 2018, losing to Democrat Joe Cunningham in the general election, the first time a Republican lost that seat in nearly 40 years.
Mace, the first woman to graduate from the Corps of Cadets program at The Citadel, ran for the seat in 2020 with Trump’s endorsement and edged out Cunningham by approximately 6,000 votes. Polling for House primary races is sporadic, but a Trafalgar Group poll taken at the end of May shows Mace with a lead of 5 points.
Arrington, for her part, is playing the role of a Trump acolyte to perfection. During the one debate she had with Mace, Arrington managed to make sure she told anyone watching how much she’d fight to keep critical race theory and the “transgender agenda” out of classrooms — something primarily reserved for state and local officials. She also accused Mace of acting like a “liberal” and a “RINO,” or “Republican in name only.”
Mace has a conservative voting record. While organizational scores don’t figure prominently in elections, Heritage Action does give Mace a 93% rating, while the average House rating for Republicans is 89%. So it’s hard to take Arrington’s accusation that Mace is a RINO, much less a liberal, seriously with those numbers.
So why the change of heart from Trump? Easy. Mace violated the golden rule of Thou Shalt Not Criticize Donald Trump. Mace was vocal about the events of Jan. 6. She said, “Every accomplishment that Republicans have made over the last four years, including President Trump … were wiped out in just a few short hours.” Mace voted to certify the election results. She later voted against the formation of the Jan. 6 commission and voted to oust Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) from her leadership role in the GOP.
That wasn’t enough for Trump.
The Washington Examiner caught up with Mace as she zips between Washington, D.C., for business and South Carolina for the campaign. Asked how she felt about the vote, Mace said she was “cautiously optimistic.” She offered up a blunt assessment of Arrington: “She simply can’t tell the truth.” Mace made sure to highlight that she received the endorsement of Summerville Mayor Ricky Waring. The key to that endorsement? It’s an apparent snub of Arrington, who lives in Summerville.
Mace is looking to the future and the likely possibility Republicans will control at least the House and what the agenda will look like. Mace said, “Inflation and the supply chain will be the top two issues.” She criticized President Joe Biden directly, saying he’s not taking the steps he should to alleviate inflation, such as eliminating more tariffs and pushing for more changes to assist with the shortage of baby formula. “He’s done nothing about the FDA, and why is customs seizing formula that comes in from overseas?” she asked.
Mace maintained that while she is a conservative — she called herself a “staunch fiscal conservative” — she will not be one who will toe the party line, even if it means falling out of favor with Trump.
While the ballot will have three names, one of the candidates, Lynz Piper-Loomis, has withdrawn from the race. So while Mace concedes Piper-Loomis will get some votes, it likely won’t be enough to keep Mace from hitting the 50.1% threshold needed to avoid a runoff.
Her “cautiously optimistic” target? “I think I’ll get 55% to 56%, with the top line close to 58%.”
