Rep. Nancy Mace denied accusations that she drank heavily and ordered her staff to bring liquor to her home after midnight. She called these claims false and stated that a genetic condition limits her alcohol intake.
Mace, a Republican from South Carolina, responded to a New York magazine profile published Monday. It included quotes from former staffers who claimed she would “command” aides to “bring her liquor after midnight to keep parties going at her home” during her first term. They also said she made staff “clean multiple properties” she listed on Airbnb.
During an appearance on Newsmax with host Todd Starnes, Mace described the article as filled with “fabrication and lies.” When asked directly about the late-night liquor and cleaning allegations, she rejected both. “Absolutely not, never in either case,” she said. Nancy Mace added that she goes to bed early and stated, “No one’s been over to my house after midnight.”
Mace mentioned that she has hemochromatosis, a genetic condition that causes the body to absorb too much iron. She argued that alcohol would make her condition worse. “I’m not allowed to drink or consume much in the way of alcohol,” she said on Newsmax, adding that drinking “will destroy your organs, and you’ll die at an early age.”
In posts responding to the profile, Mace discussed her condition and noted that alcohol consumption can speed up iron absorption and stress organs. “So, I don’t drink much. Never have,” she wrote.
Natalie Johnson, identified as Mace’s former head of communications, challenged that statement in a public post. She called it “the funniest, most brazen lie she’s told to date.” Johnson alleged that Mace “drank so much she’d have interns or junior staff run to Congressional Liquor during the work day so she could imbibe during telephone town halls.”
Cheers! https://t.co/CRRGGeCPlH pic.twitter.com/t1G2Ebz53a
— Natalie Johnson (@nataliejohnsonn) February 3, 2026
Johnson also responded to Mace’s hemochromatosis comments by sharing a collection of photos where Mace appears to be holding drinks. According to reporting on the dispute, the photos do not show when or how much alcohol Mace actually consumed. However, Johnson presented them as evidence against Mace’s claim that she does not drink much.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) is the subject of an investigation by the Office of Congressional Conduct, according to the House Ethics Committee. pic.twitter.com/5m1zwy3K7S
— bryan metzger (@metzgov) January 16, 2026
The New York magazine profile described an office with high turnover and included multiple former staffers who said Nancy Mace often used aides for personal tasks and behaved erratically, which included the after-hours alcohol allegations. Mace has stated that she sought legal counsel after the story was published, according to Newsmax.
This dispute arises as Mace is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee’s Office of Congressional Conduct, though reports have not revealed the focus of that inquiry.
Mace has also faced disputes over an incident at Charleston International Airport. An internal investigative report described her as berating airport police during a disagreement over travel security and using profanity. Mace has denied the report’s account and called it false.
