The retired Navy admiral was removed from her Pentagon role under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in 2025. Democrat Nancy Lacore defeated Republican Jenny Costa Honeycutt to flip a traditionally GOP-held South Carolina House seat.
Lacore won the race for South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, according to Decision Desk HQ (DDHQ), becoming the first Democrat to represent the district since it was redrawn to favor Republicans. Nancy Mace, who lost her bid for South Carolina governor earlier this year. Lacore built her campaign around her military background and criticism of Hegseth’s leadership at the Pentagon. She argued that the Defense Department had suffered under his management and questioned his handling of the Iran war. Lacore completed multiple deployment. She also used her national security experience to appeal to voters concerned about military leadership and foreign policy decisions. The contest for Rep. The Democrat first had to win a competitive primary. She defeated Coast Guard veteran Mac Deford in a June runoff to secure the Democratic nomination before entering the general election contest.
The victory marked a major Democratic gain in a district President Donald Trump won by 13 percentage points in the previous presidential election, according to The Hill . Lacore secured just under 50% of the vote, while Honeycutt finished with more than 48%, with all votes counted, according to The Hill.
Nancy Mace’s (R) 1st District seat was changed from “lean Republican” to “toss-up” by nonpartisan election handicapper Cook Political Report after Lacore outraised Charleston County Council member Honeycutt.
The seat was previously held by Rep. Earlier last year, Mace made an unsuccessful run for Palmetto State governor. Her victory also creates a political reversal for a seat previously represented by Mace, who had become a prominent Republican voice before launching her unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign.
