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Mace: Possibility of being on Trump’s VP shortlist is ‘intriguing’

by Caroline Vakil - 10/31/23 12:51 PM ET

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) called the possibility of being on former President Trump’s shortlist for running mate “intriguing” during an interview on Monday.

During an interview with Charlamagne Tha God on “The Daily Show” on Monday, Mace was asked about her thoughts on the topic.

“I think it’s intriguing. It’s interesting,” Mace said, adding “it’s a conversation we need to have because I want my little girl to know that she can be president one day.”

“And I want to see Republicans put women on the ticket: vice president, presidential. I mean I want to see that happen because I want little girls everywhere to know that they too can be president one day. So I think it’s an important conversation to have, but so are too a lot of other conversations.”

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The South Carolina Republican noted that she hadn’t been asked by Trump yet, adding she was focused on her state.

“I understand why people might be talking about it,” she said. “I do a lot for women’s issues and Republicans lost women last year. But my focus today, as it always will be — I love the Lowcountry, where you and I grew up in, and that’s where my focus is.”

Mace’s comments come nearly a month since she joined seven Republicans and all Democrats in moving to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as House Speaker, with Mace’s vote seen as particularly surprising among Republicans.

Trump continues to lead the 2024 GOP primary field, both in national and local polling. While Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has largely polled in second place in Iowa polling, an NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom survey out on Monday found Trump in first place, with DeSantis and former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley tied for second.

Haley has placed second in New Hampshire and South Carolina, according to RealClearPolitics’s polling average of surveys from both states.

But Trump’s dominance in the GOP primary is raising questions about whether any rival candidate will be able to galvanize enough of the electorate to seriously challenge Trump.