Incumbent Nancy Mace (R) and Katie Arrington (R) are running in the Republican primary for South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District on June 14, 2022.
Arrington won the district’s Republican primary in 2018, defeating incumbent and former governor Mark Sanford (R) before losing the general election to Joe Cunningham (D). Cunningham was the first Democratic U.S. House candidate to win election in the district since 1978. Mace defeated Cunningham in 2020 and says she is best-positioned to win the general election. However, former President Donald Trump (R) is targeting Mace (along with several other congressional Republicans) for voting to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election. His endorsement of Arrington has focused national media attention on the race.
Mace represented South Carolina’s 99th House District from 2018 to 2020. Her campaign has focused on electability. Mace said, “It’s the 10th fastest growing congressional district in the country…That makes the dynamics a lot different. You’ve got to be able to win your primary but you also have to be able to win a general election…Nancy Pelosi would love nothing more than to win it back.” Mace has been endorsed by former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley (R), former White House chief of staff and U.S. House member from South Carolina Mick Mulvaney (R), U.S. House minority leader Kevin McCarthy (R), and others.
