Rep. Nancy Mace is pushing back hard against reports that she is privately considering an early retirement from Congress, reports that linked her to a supposed upcoming conversation with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who resigned her House seat in late November.
The rumors began after New York Times reporter Annie Karni wrote that the South Carolina Republican had expressed deep frustration with Speaker Mike Johnson, particularly over how women lawmakers have been treated and how the House is being run under his leadership. The report suggested Mace was weighing an early exit and might discuss it with Greene.
But Mace says that narrative is flat-out wrong.
When questioned, her team directed reporters to her latest post on X, where the congresswoman made clear she is frustrated with Congress—but not retiring.
“Not confirmed: That anyone is retiring,” Mace wrote, adding that House dysfunction, reliance on discharge petitions, and the failure to codify Trump-era executive orders are among her biggest frustrations.
The speculation intensified because Greene left Congress amid an ugly public feud with Donald Trump, who revoked his endorsement and branded her “Marjorie ‘Traitor’ Greene.” The possibility of a second high-profile GOP woman exiting early sent shockwaves through a House already fractured along ideological and personal lines.
Mace, however, insists nothing of the sort is happening.
In a pointed social media post, she said:
“I loathe how slow Congress moves. I loathe that we haven’t delivered on President Trump’s agenda… Nowhere did I say I was retiring. Internet is wild.”
Her office echoed that stance even more forcefully.
“Mace is NOT retiring… NOT considering retirement and NOT discussing leaving Congress early,” her spokesperson said in a statement. “That claim is untrue.”
Frustrations With House Leadership Fuel the Fire
The uproar traces back to The New York Times’ reporting that Speaker Mike Johnson’s hold on the gavel is “weaker than ever,” largely because several Republican women have grown disillusioned with his leadership style and priorities.
For Mace, those frustrations are on full display.
On Wednesday, she signed a discharge petition to force a vote banning congressional stock trading—a bipartisan reform that has stalled under Johnson. The petition was launched by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida in an attempt to sidestep the speaker.
“Everyone agrees this is wrong. Yet we still can’t get a vote,” Mace said. “That’s Washington. And yes, it’s frustrating.”
Bigger Picture: A Republican Conference Under Strain
Whether or not Mace ever considered retirement, the episode underscores a deeper tension inside today’s GOP: women in the party increasingly challenging leadership, long-simmering distrust of congressional processes, and Trump-aligned lawmakers demanding faster action on his priorities.
For now, Mace remains in Congress—and says she’s not going anywhere.
But her criticism highlights a reality Republicans can’t ignore: the fractures within the party aren’t just ideological. They’re personal, structural, and growing harder to paper over.
