Former Navy Admiral Fired by Hegseth Projected to Flip Republican House Seat in South Carolina

A Democratic former U.S. Navy general who Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fired this year is currently projected to flip a Republican seat in South Carolina, as part of a political shellacking endured Tuesday by the GOP in the midterm elections.

Nancy Lacore, a retired three-star Navy admiral who served in the military for 35 years before Hegseth ousted her in August, was projected as of Wednesday morning to win South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District against her Republican rival Jenny Costa Honeycutt. The seat formerly belonged to Republican Rep. Nancy Mace, who left Congress for a failed gubernatorial bid.

The Associated Press had not yet called the race by 8:50 a.m. ET and with 99% of votes counted, showing Lacore ahead by roughly 3,350 votes, or 1%. Military.com reached out to Lacore’s campaign for comment.

Decision Desk HQ also projected victory for Lacore, who completed two deployments during her time in the service.

But it’s not over yet, with a 1% figure being detrimental. According to the South Carolina State Election Commission’s voter FAQ, the state’s election rules demand a recount when the difference between any winning candidate and any non-winning candidate is 1% or less of the total votes cast for all candidates for that office.

Results become official after election officials certify them, which, according to the commission, is completed by the Friday following the election. Then, the state commission meets to certify results.

Lacore isn’t worried, based on her remarks yesterday.

“What a hard night. But what a victory,” Lacore told supporters. “You know, there will be a recount, and I welcome it to just reconfirm what we already know.”

Lacore Says Constituents Tired of ‘Political Theater’

Even without the race officially being called on Tuesday evening, Lacore spoke to her supporters as if she was the victor.

“The Lowcountry doesn’t need more political theater,” Lacore, who campaigned on “financial freedom” and focusing on rising costs associated with health care and housing, said in her speech.

Mace previously won reelection with 58.2% of the vote in 2024, but failed earlier this year to advance past the Republican primary election and finished in fifth place. Republican Alan Wilson was elected as governnor Tuesday, defeating opponent Jermaine Johnson by roughly 4 percentage points.

“You need a representative who will roll up their sleeves and get to work,” Lacore said. “So when I get there, I’ll work with anyone who’s serious about tackling these issues, cleaning up Congress and giving South Carolina families a better future.”

In another political shock, Darline Graham—the sister of former U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, who died earlier this year—was not trusted by enough South Carolinians in what has long been a “red” stranglehold. Democrat Annie Andrew defeated her by roughly 5 percentage points in what has been declared an upset.

Record Number of Veterans Stood For Congress

Lacore, who oversaw more than 60,000 sailors as chief of the Navy Reserve, was one of the record number of military veterans who stepped forward to run for federal office in this year’s election cycle.

According to the veterans’ advocacy group With Honor, 752 veterans registered to run for the House and Senate this year—the highest number they have recorded since they started tracking this data in 2018.

Officials are still tallying votes across the country, so the exact number of veterans joining Congress is currently unknown.

But what is clear is that Democrats have won both the U.S. House and the Senate in what will create challenges for President Donald Trump as he seeks to implement his policy agenda in the final two years of his presidency, effectively as a “lame duck” president.