A new exposé from New York Magazine alleges that South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace directed her congressional staff to upvote her in Reddit polls ranking the "hottest" women in Congress.
Former aides described an office environment consumed by image management, claiming Mace was "very adamant" about boosting posts focused on her appearance, a detail that seemed to overshadow broader allegations of abusive workplace behavior.
The bombshell report published on Monday draws on stories from staff members who have worked for Mace since she took office in 2021.
Multiple interviewees said her behavior became more confrontational and erratic as the months went by, culminating in a nearly hour-long "scorched earth" speech on the House floor on Feb. 11, 2026.
Mace accused her ex-fiancé, Patrick Bryant, and three other men of physical and sexual assault and rape, among other crimes.
"We were scared of her," said a former aide. "She would make staffers cry. She would threaten to fire them, take their money away, not give them raises, not to give them days off, religious days."
As a Mace spokesperson threatened lawsuits, the chronically online focused on one particular detail. The article states that Mace directed staff to vote for her in Reddit polls ranking the most attractive congresswomen.
"Mace was 'very adamant' about getting the staffer to upvote any posts about the congresswoman and her attractiveness, according to a second former staffer," reported Jake Lahut.
Mace's director of operations Cameron Morabito told New York Magazine: "These allegations are so ridiculous they don’t even merit a response. I hope she sues you for every dime you got paid to write this defamatory bullsh*t."
Memes, mockery, and "stop the count" jokes take over
Naturally, word of this soon spread to Reddit. Community members were floored by the concept of government workers voting on the platform's hotness ranking polls.
The post on r/Fauxmoi already has five "mind blown" awards.
"I’ve read all of that and I can only say… W. T. F.," said u/SugarCanDee.
Meanwhile, on X, people are trying to guess which Reddit posts Mace's suffering staffers had to vote on. Perhaps it was the one comparing her to Rep. Lauren Boebert? Or the poll ranking congresswomen in bikinis?
"The 'everyone is twelve' theory guy remains undefeated," @NickB1016 declared.
Mace, meanwhile, took to X to call the story a "hit piece," alleging that "all the establishment is coming after me again."
"When you stand for something, you make enemies," she added.
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