Nancy Mace

Nancy Mace
Born	Nancy Ruth Mace 4 12, 1977
Birthplace	Fort Bragg, North Carolina, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Politician, businesswoman
Known for	First woman to graduate from The Citadel's Corps of Cadets; first Republican woman elected to Congress from South Carolina
Education	The Citadel (BA) University of Georgia (MA)
Children	2
Website	[nancymace.org Official site]

Nancy Ruth Mace (born December 4, 1977) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district since January 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Mace first entered public office in 2018 when she won a seat in the South Carolina House of Representatives, representing the 99th district until 2020. Her path to political prominence was shaped in part by a historic achievement two decades earlier: in 1999, she became the first woman to graduate from the Corps of Cadets program at The Citadel Military College of South Carolina, an institution that had been all-male for more than 150 years. In the 2020 general election, she defeated incumbent Democrat Joe Cunningham to win the 1st congressional district seat, becoming the first Republican woman elected to Congress from South Carolina. She was subsequently re-elected in 2022 and 2024. In August 2025, Mace announced her candidacy for Governor of South Carolina in the 2026 election cycle.

Early Life

Nancy Ruth Mace was born on December 4, 1977, at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, reflecting her family's connection to the United States military. Her father, Emory Mace, had a career in the military and later served as the commandant of cadets at The Citadel Military College of South Carolina in Charleston. Growing up in a military family environment shaped Mace's early years and influenced her decision to pursue education at The Citadel.

Mace has spoken publicly about difficult experiences from her youth. In 2019, she disclosed that she had been raped as a teenager, an experience she said she carried privately for years before sharing it publicly. She stated that the assault occurred when she was sixteen years old. Mace said she chose to share her story in an effort to support other survivors of sexual assault and to inform her legislative work on related issues. The disclosure came while she was serving in the South Carolina House of Representatives and drew significant public attention.

Her father's role as commandant at The Citadel placed the family squarely within the institution's community during a period of significant change, as the historically all-male military college was navigating the integration of women into its Corps of Cadets program during the late 1990s.

Education

In 1999, Mace became the first woman to graduate from The Citadel's Corps of Cadets program, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree. The Citadel, located in Charleston, South Carolina, had operated as an all-male institution for over 150 years before admitting women to the Corps of Cadets in 1996. Mace entered the program and completed the rigorous four-year military college curriculum, graduating alongside her male peers. The Citadel has recognized Mace's achievement, featuring her during events such as Women's History Month observances.

After completing her undergraduate education, Mace went on to earn a Master of Arts degree from the University of Georgia. The advanced degree complemented her undergraduate military education and preceded her entry into both the business world and politics.

Career

Business career

Prior to entering elected office, Mace worked in the private sector. She founded a consulting firm and was involved in business ventures in the Charleston area. Her business background became a component of her political identity, as she frequently referenced her experience as a small business owner during her campaigns for public office.

South Carolina House of Representatives (2018–2020)

Mace entered electoral politics in 2017 when she ran for the 99th district seat in the South Carolina House of Representatives. The district encompassed the communities of Hanahan, northeast Mount Pleasant, and Daniel Island. She won a Republican primary runoff to secure the party's nomination. She then won the general election in January 2018, succeeding James Merrill in the seat.

Her election was notable for making her the first Citadel graduate to serve in the South Carolina state legislature. During her tenure in the state House, Mace worked on several legislative initiatives. Among her most prominent legislative achievements was her involvement in the passage of a bill banning the shackling of pregnant inmates in South Carolina. The legislation, which was signed into law by Governor Henry McMaster in May 2020, made South Carolina the 43rd state to outlaw the practice.

Mace served in the state House until November 2020, when she was succeeded by Mark Smith following her successful campaign for Congress.

2020 U.S. House campaign

In 2020, Mace launched a campaign for South Carolina's 1st congressional district, which covers a six-county area in the southern portion of the state including portions of the Charleston metropolitan area. The seat was held by Democrat Joe Cunningham, who had won it in 2018 in what was considered an upset victory in a historically Republican-leaning district.

During the Republican primary, Mace positioned herself as aligned with then-President Donald Trump and his policy agenda. She featured her connections to Trump in campaign advertising. She won the Republican primary in June 2020, securing the nomination to challenge Cunningham in the general election.

The general election campaign between Mace and Cunningham was closely watched. The two candidates debated issues including taxes, the future of Parris Island, and voting records. Environmental issues, particularly offshore oil drilling and climate change, also featured in the race. Mace had previously expressed concern about offshore drilling along the South Carolina coast, an issue on which some coastal Republicans broke with the national party. In 2020, Trump placed a 10-year ban on offshore drilling off the South Carolina coast, a move that drew reactions from both parties.

Mace defeated Cunningham in the November 2020 general election, becoming the first Republican woman elected to Congress from South Carolina. She assumed office on January 3, 2021, succeeding Cunningham.

U.S. House of Representatives (2021–present)

Mace began serving in the 117th Congress in January 2021 as the representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district. She was re-elected in 2022 and again in 2024.

During the 2022 Republican primary, Mace faced a challenge but prevailed. The race drew national attention, with commentators noting that the Trump endorsement remained a significant factor in Republican primary contests in the state.

In Congress, Mace has taken on a variety of legislative and oversight roles. She has been involved in efforts related to government accountability and transparency. In 2025, she introduced a resolution directing the House Committee on Ethics to preserve and publicly release all reports on investigations into sexual misconduct by members of Congress. The resolution came in the wake of allegations involving Representative Tony Gonzales of Texas, whom Mace publicly called on to resign.

Mace has also been involved in oversight activities related to the Jeffrey Epstein case, alleging in 2025 that the Department of Justice was withholding significant volumes of records related to the investigation.

On the legislative front, Mace introduced a skills-based federal contracting bill that aimed to reduce educational degree requirements for federal contracting positions in favor of skills-based assessments. The bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously and was sent to the Senate for consideration.

2026 South Carolina gubernatorial campaign

In August 2025, Mace announced her candidacy for Governor of South Carolina in the 2026 election. The announcement placed her in a Republican primary field that also included South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson and other candidates. During a candidate forum in Greenville, South Carolina, Wilson urged the gubernatorial candidates not to engage in destructive primary infighting, a comment made in the context of Mace's absence from the event, where she was described as a "chief critic" of Wilson.

Personal Life

Nancy Mace has two children. She has been married and divorced. Details of her personal relationships have appeared in public reporting over the years, though Mace has generally kept specific aspects of her family life relatively private while in public office.

In 2019, while serving in the South Carolina House of Representatives, Mace publicly disclosed for the first time that she had been raped at the age of sixteen. She said that the experience had a lasting impact on her life and that she decided to share her story to help other survivors and to bring personal perspective to legislative discussions about sexual assault and related policy issues. The disclosure drew attention both within South Carolina and nationally, and Mace has continued to reference the experience as informing her approach to legislation addressing sexual violence and the treatment of women in the criminal justice system, including her work on the bill banning the shackling of pregnant inmates.

Mace resides in the Lowcountry region of South Carolina, within the boundaries of the 1st congressional district she represents.

Recognition

Mace's graduation from The Citadel's Corps of Cadets in 1999 as the first woman to complete the program has been recognized as a milestone in the history of the institution and in the broader context of women's integration into military education in the United States. The Citadel has featured Mace in its Women's History Month programming, acknowledging her role in the college's history. The achievement has been covered by national and regional media outlets, including The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which profiled her experience at the military college.

Her election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2020 was similarly noted as a historic first, as she became the first Republican woman elected to Congress from South Carolina. This distinction placed her among a growing cohort of Republican women elected to Congress in the 2020 cycle.

In the legislative arena, the unanimous passage of her skills-based federal contracting bill in the House represented a bipartisan achievement, reflecting support from both Republican and Democratic members for the measure's approach to reducing barriers to federal contracting work.

Legacy

Nancy Mace's place in the history of The Citadel and of South Carolina politics is defined by two firsts: she was the first woman to graduate from The Citadel's Corps of Cadets, and the first Republican woman elected to Congress from South Carolina. Her graduation from The Citadel in 1999 came just three years after the institution began admitting women to the Corps of Cadets, and her completion of the demanding military program was a significant moment in the decades-long national debate over the integration of women into military educational institutions.

In the South Carolina state legislature, her work on the legislation banning the shackling of pregnant inmates represented a tangible policy impact during her relatively brief tenure in the state House. The bill's passage and signing into law by the governor brought South Carolina into alignment with the majority of U.S. states on the issue.

Her congressional career has been characterized by engagement on issues of government transparency and accountability, as reflected in her resolution to compel the release of Ethics Committee reports on sexual misconduct investigations and her oversight activities related to the Epstein case. Her legislative work on skills-based hiring for federal contracting demonstrated an ability to build bipartisan consensus on workforce policy.

With her entry into the 2026 South Carolina gubernatorial race, Mace has signaled an ambition to seek executive office, adding another chapter to a political career that has consistently intersected with questions of gender, access, and institutional change in South Carolina.