Republican Rep. Nancy Mace told a racy story Wednesday about prioritizing a prayer breakfast over a morning romp with her fiancé.
The 45-year-old South Carolina congresswoman said she had woken up at 7 a.m. and only had 45 minutes to get ready for the annual event, which brought together South Carolina lawmakers and took place on Capitol Hill.
It’s hosted by South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, who’s also running for president.
‘Patrick, my fiance, tried to pull me by my waist over this morning in bed,’ Mace told the crowd. ‘And I was like, “No, baby we don’t got time for that this morning, I’ve got to get to the prayer breakfast, and I’ve gotta be on time,”‘ she recalled.
Receiving some chuckles from the audience, she noted she was being a ‘little TMI.’
‘He can wait!’ she said laughing. ‘I’ll see him later tonight.’
‘Patrick, my fiance, tried to pull me by my waist over this morning in bed,’ Rep. Nancy Mace told a prayer breakfast crowd Wednesday. ‘And I was like, “No, baby we don’t got time for that this morning, I’ve got to get to the prayer breakfast, and I’ve gotta be on time.”‘
Rep. Nancy Mace (right) reacts to a surprise proposal from her now fiancé Patrick Bryant (left) in May 2022. He surprised her by having her go door-knocking with a film crew to shoot some background imagery for her campaign. Instead it was a set-up to propose
‘I was here early today for you Tim,’ she told Scott. ‘And I think everybody was here early for you today.’
When a clip of her story started getting attention online, Mace defended the anecdote, calling it a joke.
‘I go to church because I’m a sinner not a saint!’ the congresswoman said.
‘Glad those in attendance, including Sen. Tim Scott and my pastor, took this joke in stride,’ she continued. ‘Pastor Greg and I will have extra to talk about on Sunday.’
Mace’s comments aroused some eyebrows, as she was publicly admitting to having sex before marriage, generally a no-no in Christian churches.
Mace is twice-divorced and has two children with her second husband.
She plans to wed fiancé Patrick Bryant, who has been described as a Charleston software entrepreneur.
Rep. Nancy Mace (left) poses with her fiancé Patrick Bryand (right) at a gala. The couple had been dating for several years before he popped the question last May while she was going through a tough primary campaign
Bryant surprised the congresswoman in May 2022, by tricking her into thinking she was doing door-knocking for her Congressional campaign and filming it to be used in a future political advertisement.
Instead she opened a door and Bryant appeared.
‘I literally thought I was shooting b-roll, and I’m not!’ Mace said, according to The State.
She told Bryant yes.
Her good fortune continued through 2022.
In June, she survived a tough primary after getting on the bad side of former President Donald Trump.
Mace had voted to certify the 2020 election and criticized Trump in the aftermath of the January 6 Capitol attack, however she did not vote to impeach the ex-president over his role in the ‘insurrection.’
She beat the Trump-backed challenger Katie Arrington by around 8 points.
Mace went on to win the general election in November against Democrat Annie Andrews by 14 points, in a district Mace had won against a Democrat in 2020.