An Independent Public RecordWednesday, June 17, 2026

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Bathroom sheriff, fifth place

After building a national brand on targeting Rep. Sarah McBride over Capitol bathroom access, Nancy Mace finished fifth, with roughly 12 percent of the vote, in the June 10, 2026 South Carolina Republican gubernatorial primary. McBride's response from the LGBTQ Victory Fund gala became the day's most-shared line: 'Congress's top bathroom sheriff … in a respectful fifth place. Happy Pride, Nancy.'

BuzzFeed coverage: Nancy Mace finishes fifth in the South Carolina Republican gubernatorial primary
BuzzFeed coverage: Nancy Mace finishes fifth in the South Carolina Republican gubernatorial primary · BuzzFeed

Rep. Nancy Mace gave up her safe House seat and launched a campaign for the South Carolina governorship built almost entirely on one issue: keeping Rep. Sarah McBride, Congress's first openly transgender member, out of the Capitol's women's restrooms. Newsweek reported Mace had posted about the bathroom fight 326 times in a single 72-hour stretch. On June 10, 2026, South Carolina Republicans ended her campaign: she finished fifth in the GOP primary with approximately 12 percent of the vote, behind a candidate who had never held elected office. That night, at the LGBTQ Victory Fund's Champions Gala in Washington, McBride took the stage and delivered the coda.

"Today is a big day because today is the South Carolina Republican gubernatorial primary," McBride told the gala crowd. "And for those of you who aren't aware, my colleague and Congress's top bathroom sheriff, Nancy Mace, is on the ballot. And while not all of the votes have been counted yet, she is in a respectful fifth place. I don't like punching down, and I believe in the politics of grace. So all I will say is happy Pride, Nancy."

The room at the Mellon Auditorium stood in ovation. The clip spread rapidly across X and was covered by The Advocate, Mediaite, and others. Online, commentators paired the result with the "Conservative woman who placed 5th" image, Mace alongside Olympic swimmer and anti-trans advocate Riley Gaines, that McBride had reposted with "thoughts and prayers."

McBride's primary-night remarks (verified, tweet ID confirmed by The Advocate):

Rep. Sarah McBride's X post quoting her own gala remarks, the night Mace finished fifth.

Ilhan Omar's response (verified, tweet ID confirmed by BuzzFeed):

Rep. Ilhan Omar's response to Mace's primary loss.

Ari Drennen's widely-shared summary (cited by reporting, status ID provided by brief, not independently verified in article HTML):

"Nancy Mace gave up a safe House seat to run for governor on one issue: keeping a trans congresswoman out of a bathroom. She made it her entire national brand. Last night, in a South Carolina Republican primary, she finished fifth. Behind a guy who's never held office."

Ari Drennen (@AriDrennen), June 11, 2026, via Twitter/X

Drennen's post, described in coverage as one of the day's most widely circulated takes on the result.

Sources & related coverage