I chose wrong if the goal was winning an election
In South Carolina's crowded Republican gubernatorial primary, no candidate claimed the majority needed for outright victory, sending Lieutenant Governor Pamela Evette and Attorney General Alan Wilson into a June 23 runoff. The race distilled familiar tensions of the Trump era — loyalty, principle, and political survival — most visibly in the elimination of Representative Nancy Mace, who had staked her campaign on conscience over calculation. In a state that has not sent a Democrat to the governor's mansion in over two decades, the runoff is, in many ways, the election that will decide everything.
- No candidate in a six-person field crossed the majority threshold, forcing a second vote and prolonging uncertainty in a race that had no clear frontrunner.
- Trump's endorsement of Evette, amplified by outgoing Governor McMaster's backing, gave her a structural advantage that reshaped the contest in its final stretch.
- Nancy Mace's elimination struck the sharpest note of the night — her role in pushing for the release of Epstein files appeared to cost her the race, and she said so plainly in her concession.
- Mace's parting endorsement of Wilson injects new energy into his runoff campaign, potentially redirecting her supporters toward the attorney general.
- With South Carolina's deep Republican lean and Trump's 58% showing in 2024, the June 23 runoff between Evette and Wilson is effectively the race for governor.
South Carolina's Republican primary for governor ended Tuesday without a winner, pushing the field's top two finishers — Lieutenant Governor Pamela Evette and Attorney General Alan Wilson — into a runoff on June 23. Neither cleared the majority threshold required to avoid a second round in what had been a six-candidate contest.
Evette entered the night with significant institutional momentum. President Trump had endorsed her in the final days before the primary, calling her a fighter and a winner, and term-limited Governor Henry McMaster added his own backing. That combination of endorsements proved enough to place her at the top of the field, though not enough to close the race outright.
The evening's most resonant moment belonged to Nancy Mace, the congresswoman whose campaign had been built around defiance. She had condemned Trump after January 6, survived his attempt to unseat her in a House primary, and then became a central figure in the House push to release the Epstein files — a stand that appeared to define, and ultimately doom, her gubernatorial bid. In her concession, she wrote that she had chosen to stand on principle against the Epstein cover-up, and acknowledged that doing so had cost her the election.
Mace endorsed Wilson on her way out, a signal that could matter in a tight runoff. The other eliminated candidates included state Senator Josh Kimbrell, Representative Ralph Norman, and former business executive Rom Reddy.
For Evette and Wilson, the runoff is now the contest that counts. South Carolina has not elected a Democratic governor since 2003, and with Trump carrying the state by 58 percent last year, the Republican nominee will enter November as a heavy favorite. The real question is which of the two will get there.
South Carolina's Republican primary for governor produced no winner on Tuesday night, forcing the state's two leading candidates into a runoff scheduled for June 23. Pamela Evette, the sitting lieutenant governor, and Alan Wilson, who has served as the state's attorney general for more than fifteen years, emerged from a crowded field of six to claim the top two spots. Neither secured the majority threshold required to avoid a second round of voting.
Evette carried the backing of President Trump, who had endorsed her shortly before the primary and called her a "good friend, fighter, and WINNER" during the early voting period. Governor Henry McMaster, who is term-limited and cannot seek reelection, also threw his support behind her. That dual endorsement proved decisive in a race that had lacked a clear frontrunner heading into election day.
The primary's most notable casualty was Representative Nancy Mace, whose campaign had been defined by principle and defiance in equal measure. She had condemned Trump after the January 6 Capitol riot in 2021, a stance that prompted him to back a primary challenger against her House seat two years later. Despite that opposition, she won reelection. In the months that followed, her relationship with Trump appeared to warm, but she then became instrumental in the House effort to release the Epstein files—a move that apparently cost her the governor's race. On Tuesday night, after her elimination from the primary, Mace posted on social media: "as a survivor, I chose to stand on principle and stand against the Epstein cover-up. And apparently, I chose wrong if the goal was winning an election."
Mace's concession came with an endorsement of Wilson, signaling where her supporters might turn in the runoff. The other candidates eliminated in the primary were state Senator Josh Kimbrell, U.S. Representative Ralph Norman, and Rom Reddy, a former business executive.
The Republican nominee will enter the general election in November as the heavy favorite. South Carolina has not elected a Democratic governor since Jim Hodges left office in 2003, and Trump carried the state with 58 percent of the vote in 2024. For either Evette or Wilson, the runoff is now the real contest that matters.
Citações Notáveis
As a survivor, I chose to stand on principle and stand against the Epstein cover-up. And apparently, I chose wrong if the goal was winning an election.— Rep. Nancy Mace, in a social media post after her elimination
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why did Mace lose when she'd won reelection to Congress just four years earlier, even against Trump's opposition?
Because a governor's race is different terrain. She'd built a House seat on her own brand and local loyalty. But in a statewide primary, Trump's endorsement of Evette was a gravitational force—especially in a state where he won by 20 points. Mace's principled stands on January 6 and the Epstein files may have earned her respect, but they didn't move primary voters.
Did she misjudge the moment, or did the moment change?
Both, maybe. She seemed to believe that standing against Trump on principle would resonate. But South Carolina Republicans in 2026 weren't looking for that kind of independence. They wanted alignment.
What does Wilson bring that Evette doesn't?
Longevity. Fifteen years as attorney general means deep institutional roots, relationships with law enforcement, a record. Evette has Trump and McMaster, which is powerful. Wilson has the machinery.
So the runoff is really about which kind of Republican wins—the Trump-backed outsider or the establishment veteran?
In a way, yes. But both are Republicans in a state where that's nearly synonymous with winning. The real question is whether Wilson can overcome Trump's endorsement of Evette, or whether Evette's Trump backing is simply too much.
What happens to Mace now?
She endorsed Wilson, which suggests she sees him as the better alternative to Evette. But her political future in South Carolina is probably over. You don't lose a governor's race and come back.