Mark Sanford, the former South Carolina governor and congressman with one of the more colorful careers in recent political memory, has filed to run for South Carolina's 1st Congressional District seat being vacated by Rep. Nancy Mace, who is leaving to run for governor.
Sanford served in the House from 1995 to 2001, won the governorship and served from 2003 to 2011, then won back his old congressional seat in a 2013 special election. In 2018, Trump targeted him in his primary, he lost to Katie Arrington, and Arrington went on to lose the general election to a Democrat.
He drew national attention in 2009 when he vanished for a week, with his staff telling reporters he was hiking the Appalachian Trail. It later emerged that he was visiting his Argentine mistress, raising eyebrows for what was once seen as a potential presidential contender. He finished his term and ultimately returned to Congress.
Sanford made a cameo in the news cycle again in November 2025, when journalist Ryan Lizza accused his then-fiancée, political reporter Olivia Nuzzi, of having had an affair with Sanford in 2020 while covering his presidential campaign.
He is running on a platform of fiscal conservatism, telling the Post and Courier, which first broke the news of his filing: "People have been telling me it's time to get off the bleachers."
He is stepping into a crowded race, with ten Republicans and four Democrats already competing for the seat. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
