South Carolina’s Democrat Nancy Lacore Explains Historic Win and Plan to Combat Cost of Living in Washington
Rep.-elect Nancy Lacore discusses her narrow victory in SC's District 1 and her mission to lower housing costs and repeal controversial trade tariffs.
POLICY WIRE — Washington, D.C. — Representative-elect Vice Admiral Nancy Lacore, the Democrat who secured a historic victory in South Carolina’s 1st District, flipped a seat that Republicans had controlled for 43 of the last 45 years. Winning by a narrow margin of approximately 3,000 votes, Lacore attributed her success to a strategic focus on building a broad coalition through nonpartisan leadership.
Lacore noted that the campaign was an uphill battle that required reaching beyond the traditional Democratic base to engage moderate Republicans and independent voters. A key component of this strategy involved securing an endorsement from the mayor of Mount Pleasant, the largest city in the district. She emphasized that her 35 years of experience in bipartisan military leadership were instrumental in gaining trust from voters across party lines.
Addressing her political past, Lacore revealed she was a registered Republican until 2016, leaving the party due to disagreements with Donald Trump. Despite the need to work with the current president, she expressed optimism regarding the new makeup of Congress. She highlighted that the high number of veterans among the incoming lawmakers would likely help prioritize mission-oriented results over partisan affiliation.
The Representative-elect’s legislative agenda focuses on reducing the costs of housing and medical care, as well as eliminating tax breaks for data centers. However, she stated that her top priority is ending the current war, which she claims has severely inflated costs both domestically and internationally. She also called for the repeal of executive-ordered tariffs that she believes increase the price of new construction.
Lacore further argued for the need to make current tax exemptions on tips and Social Security permanent, noting that these measures are set to expire at the end of the current administration. When asked how she would persuade the president to rescind tariffs he did not authorize, she asserted that Congress must unite around the universal issue of the rising cost of living to help all Americans.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)