Trump endorses SC Republican Rep. Nancy Mace in bid for third term in Congress
In a move seemingly designed to put past disagreements aside for the sake of party unity, former President Donald Trump has announced his endorsement of Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) in her quest for a third term in the House, as the Washington Examiner reports.
Trump's decision comes despite the pair's somewhat bumpy past history but bodes well for a unified GOP front ahead of the November general election.
Trump delivers endorsement
The former president's words of support for Mace came in a Saturday post on his Truth Social network.
“It is my great honor to Endorse a Strong Conservative Voice for South Carolina's 1st Congressional District,” Trump began.
He went on, “Nancy Mace worked hard campaigning across South Carolina in support of our Record-Breaking WIN. In Congress, she is fighting to Secure the Border, Strengthen our Military, Support our Veterans, Uphold the Rule of Law, Stop Political Weaponization, and Protect and Defend our always under siege Second Amendment.”
Rounding off the post in his characteristic fashion, Trump declared, “Congresswoman Nancy Mace has my Complete and Total Endorsement!”
Reciprocal support despite prior friction
Trump's full endorsement of Mace comes a few months after the congresswoman offered her support of his presidential bid.
Though Mace worked on behalf of Trump's election back in 2016, their relationship soured somewhat amid the lawmaker's condemnation of the then-president's conduct in connection to the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol unrest.
While Mace ultimately came back around to supporting Trump, she did so in somewhat less convincing terms than before, noting, “I don't see eye to eye perfectly with any candidate. And until now I've stayed out of it. But the time has come to unite behind our nominee,” she stated at the time.
Trump's decision to back the South Carolina incumbent also represents a noteworthy shift from 2022, when he supported her primary challenger, Katie Arrington and called Mace an “absolutely terrible candidate...whose remarks and attitude have been devastating for her community, and not at all representative of the Republican Party to which she has been very disloyal.”
Uniting behind Trump
It is clear that Trump and Mace have not always had the friendliest of interactions, but their current alliance is indicative of a realization across the GOP of this fall's electoral realities, something also illustrated by Sen. Mitch McConnell's recent endorsement of the former president of whom he has long been publicly critical.
All of these developments serve to underscore the timeless validity of the assertion that politics often does make for very strange bedfellows indeed.
