Curtis Jackson
Curtis Jackson is the former husband of U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace and the father of their two children, son Miles and daughter Ellison; court proceedings following their 2019 divorce resulted in a joint-custody ruling, though the couple's daughter moved in with Jackson full-time in November 2023, even as Mace has publicly described herself as a 'single mom' across campaign events, social media, and a 2024 RNC address.
Curtis Jackson is a private individual, the former husband of U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), and the father of their two children: son Miles Jackson, a full-time business student at the University of South Carolina, and daughter Ellison Jackson, who goes by "Eli." He largely maintained a low public profile throughout their marriage and after.
What happened
2004, Marriage. Nancy Mace and Curtis Jackson married in 2004.
2019, Divorce and custody ruling. Mace and Jackson divorced in 2019 after approximately 15 years of marriage. Following the divorce, Mace pursued full custody of the children. According to The List, which cited published reporting on the proceedings, the family court judge ruled that the couple would continue to share joint custody of both children. Jackson has since maintained an active co-parenting role; in December 2024, Mace publicly posted on Instagram that her children and Jackson had taken her out to dinner for her birthday, indicating an ongoing amicable relationship.
February 15, 2020, "Single mom" on social media. On her official Facebook page, Mace posted: "When you're a single mom, instilling the spirit of team work in your kiddos isn't a choice, it's a necessity. I'm blessed to have two upstanding (not so) little ones who understand the value of hard work." A commenter on the post asked, "I thought you were married?", no response from Mace to that question was visible. The post appeared roughly a year after the divorce, during the period when joint custody was in place.
January 2021, "Single working mother" identity confirmed by her office. When Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) sent a fundraising email claiming she was "the only single working mother of young kids serving in Congress," Mace's communications director publicly disputed the claim on behalf of Mace, in doing so, Mace's own staff confirmed her public identity as a single mother in Congress. This was reported by Fox News (January 25, 2021).
March 2021, Single Parents' Caucus. Mace founded a bipartisan "Single Parents' Caucus" in Congress and told The State newspaper reporter Caitlin Byrd: "I feel the pain. I know the struggle." The formation of the caucus, and Mace's framing of herself as a single parent legislating from personal experience, was reported by FITSNews (March 22, 2021), which noted that the details of her custody and co-parenting arrangement had not been publicly disclosed by her office.
November 2023, Daughter moves in full-time with her father. Although the family court had ordered joint custody following the 2019 divorce, the couple's daughter, Ellison ("Eli"), moved in with Curtis Jackson full-time in November 2023 and has lived with him since.
July 17, 2024, RNC address. Speaking at the Republican National Convention, Mace introduced herself with the words: "I'm a single mom and a rape survivor." The remark was addressed to women in the audience; she added, "To women tonight who can relate, please know, you have a friend and a sister in me." The full text of these remarks is archived by the Archives of Women's Political Communication at Iowa State University.
June 2025, Jackson remarries. Charleston County, S.C. marriage records show that Curtis Jackson married Jennifer Rodriguez on June 26, 2025 (license no. 2025001936). The couple's daughter has lived full-time in Jackson's household since November 2023.
The contrast on the record. Mace has consistently used "single mom" and "single mother" language in public contexts, campaign materials, social media, Congress, and a national convention address, while the publicly reported outcome of her post-divorce custody proceedings is a court-ordered joint custody arrangement with Jackson. No reporting has documented Mace publicly acknowledging the joint custody arrangement in connection with her "single mom" self-description. Mace's office declined to provide information about parenting arrangements when asked by FITSNews in March 2021.
Sources
- Nancy Mace Facebook, "When you're a single mom…" (February 15, 2020)
- Fox News, "Dem congresswoman wrongly claims to be only single mother of young kids in Congress" (January 25, 2021)
- FITSNews, "Nancy Mace Blasted For Calling Herself A 'Single Mother'" (February 22, 2021)
- FITSNews, "Nancy Mace's New 'Single Mother' Caucus Opens The Door To More Scrutiny Of Her Familial Status" (March 22, 2021)
- The List, "All The Details About Nancy Mace's Disastrous Love Life" (joint custody reporting)
- Archives of Women's Political Communication (Iowa State / Catt Center), Mace RNC Remarks, July 17, 2024
- Washington Examiner, "Nancy Mace makes appeal to women as 'single mom and rape survivor' in RNC speech" (July 17, 2024)
- Charleston County Probate Court, marriage license index: License No. 2025001936 (Jackson / Rodriguez, married June 26, 2025) and License No. 2004002757 (Jackson / Mace, married September 25, 2004)