Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) is under inquiry after a matter was referred to the Office of Congressional Conduct on Dec. 2. The referral comes amid scrutiny of a reported November incident at Charleston International Airport in which an internal report says she berated officers and used profanity; Mace denies those claims and calls the report falsified. The House Ethics Committee emphasized that a referral does not itself indicate a violation and will announce next steps by March 2, 2026.
House Ethics Committee Opens Inquiry Into Rep. Nancy Mace After OCC Referral
Nancy Mace
The House Ethics Committee announced on Friday that Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) is the subject of an inquiry after the matter was referred to the Office of Congressional Conduct (OCC) on Dec. 2. The committee said it will announce its next steps on or before March 2, 2026.
Officials have not publicly disclosed the specific reason for the referral. Observers and reporting have pointed to a reported incident at Charleston International Airport in early November, where an internal airport report alleged that Mace berated airport police during a miscommunication about her travel security. That report said she overreacted, created a “spectacle,” and used profanity, allegedly calling officers “f*cking idiots” and “f*cking incompetent.” Mace has disputed that account and called the report “falsified.”
What the Committee Said
“The Committee notes that the mere fact of a referral or an extension, and the mandatory disclosure of such an extension and the name of the subject of the matter, does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf of the Committee,” the committee’s press release said.
The release added that the panel will “announce its course of action in this matter on or before March 2, 2026.”
How the OCC and Committee Work
According to the OCC’s public materials, the OCC and the House Ethics Committee share responsibility for handling alleged ethical violations by House members, officers and staff. The OCC, created by the House in 2008, conducts initial, nonpartisan reviews of misconduct allegations and, when warranted, refers matters to the Committee on Ethics, which has exclusive authority to determine violations and impose penalties. The Committee on Ethics may also open investigations on its own initiative.
Mace, who is running in a crowded GOP primary for South Carolina governor, has not posted a response about the inquiry on either her personal or congressional accounts on X. Her only message on the platform since the disclosure was a warning about frigid winter weather expected this weekend.
This article will be updated as more information becomes available.
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