Part of: 2026 Governor Campaign
Mace attacks AG Alan Wilson: 'If you're a pedophile, you definitely want Alan Wilson to prosecute your case'
On January 15, 2026, Mace attacked her chief governor's-race rival, AG Alan Wilson, with a 'pedophile paradise' line after a child sex offender was arrested and released the same day; Wilson's office said Mace had 'drastically mischaracterized' the data she cited.
On January 15, 2026, after child sex offender Travis Reed Gaye was arrested and released the same day in South Carolina, Mace said of AG Alan Wilson, her chief rival in the governor's race:
"If you're a pedophile, you definitely want Alan Wilson to prosecute your case. … What happened here is a betrayal of every parent, every victim, and every child in South Carolina. Alan Wilson is turning our state into a pedophile paradise."
Wilson's office responded that Mace had "drastically mischaracterized" data she obtained via FOIA, saying the overwhelming majority of pleas she cited as lenient were straight guilty pleas with no negotiation.
Source: mace.house.gov / SC Daily Gazette · archived
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