Rep. Nancy Mace is once again attempting to rewrite political reality online, this time after President Donald Trump publicly endorsed one of her opponents in South Carolina’s Republican gubernatorial primary.
Last week, Trump announced his endorsement of Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette in a lengthy Truth Social post that left little room for interpretation. Calling Evette an “America First Patriot,” Trump praised her loyalty, described her as a “fighter,” and said she had his “Complete and Total Endorsement.”
For most candidates, that would settle the matter. But Mace, who has spent months aggressively branding herself as one of Trump’s closest political allies, responded by insisting the endorsement was not real.
“Pamela Evette is NOT ENDORSED by DONALD TRUMP,” Mace wrote on social media. “Do not believe her LIES.”
The post included an AI-generated video of Mace standing beside Trump. X later attached a community note clarifying that Trump had in fact endorsed Evette the same day Mace made the claim and noting that the video was artificially generated.
Mace continued posting photos and older clips of herself with Trump throughout the weekend while promoting herself online as “MAGA MACE.” In another post, she suggested Trump’s decision not to endorse her was tied to her support for releasing additional federal records related to Jeffrey Epstein.
“I know I put the likelihood of an endorsement on the line when I demanded transparency on the Epstein files,” Mace wrote.
The public unraveling comes at a difficult moment for Mace’s campaign.
A new Trafalgar Group poll conducted May 29 through May 31 shows Mace sitting in fifth place in the crowded Republican primary field ahead of the June 9 election. Evette leads the race with 26.3% support, followed by businessman Rom Reddy at 17.2%, Attorney General Alan Wilson at 16.9%, and Rep. Ralph Norman at 16.1%. Mace trails with 14.8%.
The numbers reflect a striking decline for a candidate who entered the race with significant national attention, high name recognition, and years of cable news visibility.
Instead of broadening her coalition, however, Mace has increasingly built her campaign around grievance politics, confrontation, and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric. Over the past year, she has repeatedly referred to herself as a “proud transphobe,” introduced legislation targeting transgender restroom access, publicly misgendered transgender people, and used anti-trans slurs during campaign appearances.
That strategy helped elevate her profile nationally, particularly among far-right media outlets and culture war influencers. But it has also contributed to growing frustration inside South Carolina Republican circles, where several party operatives and elected officials have openly questioned her temperament and political judgment.
Trump’s endorsement of Evette now adds another layer to that reality.
For months, Mace attempted to present herself as the natural Trump candidate in the race. Instead, the former president publicly backed someone else while Mace responded by insisting voters should not believe what Trump himself wrote.
With early voting already underway, the moment underscores an increasingly difficult truth for Mace’s campaign: attention is not the same thing as support, and political performance does not always translate into political strength.
