(MYRTLE BEACH, S.C.) — During a town hall event, Republican Rep. Nancy Mace compared herself to President Donald Trump and requested he endorse her for South Carolina’s governor — a race where there is already a crowded slate of five candidates.
In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Mace encountered a friendly crowd at her first town hall since launching her bid for governor and called on them to have Trump — and his supporters — back her.
“I’m just saying I’ve done a lot for the president, and if you talk to him, I would really like his support for governor,” she said Wednesday during her first stop on her so-called “Mother of All Town Halls” tour.
Mace is one of several Republicans who have already thrown their hats into the ring for the state’s top job. Attorney General Alan Wilson, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and Rep. Ralph Norman have also announced their campaigns.
Mace outlined her campaign promises, urging the audience to support her run to lead the state. She also likened herself to Trump, who is popular in the state after winning it in his 2016, 2020 and 2024 presidential runs.
“I want to take what’s broken in South Carolina, and I want to burn it down to the ground and build it right back up, right where it needs to be, because you’ve earned it. You deserve it, and you deserve someone who’s going to work 24/7. I don’t sleep. I went to bed at 1 a.m., and I was up at 4 a.m. OK, I am Trump in high heels. I love what I am doing. I mean, he doesn’t sleep,” she said.
Trump enthusiastically backed Mace for Congress in 2024 after she endorsed him in the state’s presidential primary. Their support for each other was a change after an earlier clash. One day after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, Mace said Trump’s “entire legacy” was “wiped out” by the siege. Later, during the 2022 midterms, Trump called Mace “terrible” and a letdown.
Trump has not yet publicly commented on Mace’s recent request for his endorsement.
As governor, Mace said child rapists would get the death penalty, eliciting a loud applause from the crowd. She said businesses who employ “illegal aliens” will be fined $1,000 a day, and hopes to bring down the state income tax.
The congresswoman repeatedly brought up her work to ban transgender women from using facilities on federal properties, such as bathrooms and locker rooms.
“We’re going to stop that in South Carolina, because on day one, if you give me a bathroom bill — state legislature, I will sign it into law. We’re going to keep men out of women’s spaces,” she said.
Mace also recounted how she helped get Mike Johnson elected as speaker of the House by getting Trump on the phone with remaining Republican holdouts.
“When there’s one guy in the room that can bring all of us together, I witnessed it, and that man was Donald J. Trump, so I was there for him when we got the speaker elected.”
Mace engaged with an agreeable crowd during the short question-and-answer portion, during which topics including the Department of Government Efficiency, fluoride in water and Trump’s promise to provide a tax credit on generators were raised.
Pressed by an audience member about Trump’s promise to provide a tax credit on generators for individuals who live in dangerous or coastal communities following the floods, Mace said, “I can absolutely remind him.”
Mace said she hopes “like hell” DOGE is “on its way” to South Carolina, claiming she has helped DOGE find “some of these crazy contracts” that DOGE claims are wasteful.
“We’ve got to audit some of our agencies, particularly the Department of Education. I want to know where all the money is going, and can we take some of it out of the bureaucracy and give it to our teachers?” she said.
The congresswoman said she would support “any action to remove fluoride from our water and also ban chemtrails,” the widely debunked conspiracy theory that claims the white lines from aircraft are releasing chemicals — including for nefarious reasons.
Her friendly town hall came at a time when many other members of Congress are facing hostile crowd at rowdy events. Earlier this week, a town hall crowd shouted at and heckled Republican Rep. Mike Flood as he touted Trump’s massive policy and tax bill that was signed into law in July.
ABC News’ Sarah Beth Hensley contributed to this report.
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