Nancy Mace’s ‘Victim Hotline’ Is Just a Voicemail That’s Misleading Victims 

Deborah Freel, executive director of Tri-County S.P.E.A.K.S., a sexual assault resource center in Mace’s district, told Mother Jones point-blank that the number “isn’t a hotline" and shouldn't be called one.

By Kylie Cheung  |  February 12, 2025 | 1:47pm
Photo: Getty Images Politics
Nancy Mace’s ‘Victim Hotline’ Is Just a Voicemail That’s Misleading Victims 

On Monday night, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) spoke on the House floor for nearly an hour and accused her ex-fiancé, Patrick Bryant, and three other men of having drugged and sexually assaulted her. In the jarringly graphic remarks, she claimed to have found 10,000 videos of Bryant and his associates sexually assaulting her and dozens of other women and girls on his phone in November 2023. Throughout Mace’s remarks, she stood in front of a bright pink sign that gave a phone number for a “VICTIM HOTLINE.” Mace then promoted this supposed hotline on her social media and claimed in several tweets to be receiving a high volume of calls from domestic violence victims sharing their stories. 

Except the “hotline” isn’t a hotline at all.

Mother Jones first reported on Tuesday that Mace’s so-called “victim hotline” is more so, as journalist Julianne McShane put it, a “glorified voicemail.” McShane reported her experience calling several times, each an hour apart, and only getting a pre-recorded message.

I tried calling twice on Wednesday morning. “Hi, this is Congresswoman Nancy Mace, and you’ve reached our office victim hotline. Please note your information is confidential,” the voicemail says. “Please leave a detailed message and we will contact you as soon as possible. You may also text us at this number.” Beep. I sent a text message to the hotline as well, asking if it was Mace’s “victim hotline,” and received this response one hour later:

Yes. Our office is focused on taking the calls from victims of the event Rep. Mace described in her speech on Monday. We are unable to assist anyone who does not live in our district due to House ethics rules. If you have a crime to report, there are local law enforcement in every jurisdiction to do so. Thank you for writing in.

Before receiving this response, I didn’t see anything in Mace’s posts that made clear she’s only accepting calls from victims of the four men she accused, let alone only victims in her district. I followed up to ask who’s operating the “hotline” and if they’re professionally trained to support victims in crisis. The same individual responded: “Our office is focused on taking the calls from victims of the event specifically described by Rep. Mace in her speech on Monday. We are unable to assist anyone who does not live in our district due to House ethics rules. If you have a crime to report, there are local law enforcement in every jurisdiction to do so.”

Deborah Freel, executive director of Tri-County S.P.E.A.K.S., a sexual assault resource center in Mace’s district, told Mother Jones point-blank that the number “isn’t a hotline” and shouldn’t be called one. Freel questioned why Mace wouldn’t simply direct victims, potentially experiencing an emergency, to existing local or national resources. “When they call and get an answering machine, that can immediately be disheartening and hurtful and can create a barrier for them to even want to take another step forward in a process,” she added. Laura Hudson, executive director of the nonprofit South Carolina Victim Assistance Network, went so far as to claim Mace’s pretend hotline “set us back about 25 years” by sowing confusion and potentially endangering victims who may call in an emergency. 

Certified victim services hotlines are typically manned by individuals who complete hours of professional training—and are often certified by their states—to be able to help rape or domestic violence victims who may be in crisis. I’m not especially inclined to believe Mace’s lower-level staffers or interns who are likely picking up the phone—if they pick up, at all—can provide that level of care.

As for the voicemail’s promise of confidentiality, McShane points out in her reporting that Mace’s office isn’t bound by the same federal confidentiality mandates that real hotlines funded and supported by the Violence Against Women Act impose. So, take from that what you will!

Since Mace’s remarks on the House floor, Bryant and the other men have denied her allegations. They face no charges at this time. Mace also accused South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson (R) of ignoring her reports and threatening her, which Wilson, too, denies. Both are expected to run for governor in 2026.

Mace’s choice to run a fake victim hotline would be pretty shocking for anyone else. But it’s entirely in line with her bizarre and dishonest approach to politics, and her faux advocacy for women and victims that often amounts to far more harm than good.

If you or someone you know are experiencing domestic violence, you can get support from the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or thehotline.org.

 
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