Source: GIORGIO VIERA / Getty
showed up at the recent Republican presidential debate with his mystery girlfriend in tow, prompting a ton of reactions online.
On Wednesday
night, as the Republican presidential debate held in Miami, Florida ended, all of the candidates were greeted by their family members and spouses on stage. Eyebrows were raised as Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina was greeted by an unidentified blonde woman in a gray pantsuit. The two then posed for photos arm-in-arm as they grinned widely. It was an interesting development for Scott, the only Black GOP candidate who has been an ardent supporter of conservative family values but has been
questioned by members of his party about his lack of a romantic life.
The woman was later confirmed by someone close to the campaign to be Mindy Noce, a design and renovations manager for a real estate firm in the Charleston, South Carolina area where Scott is from. Other sources confirmed that she is a mother of three children. Senator Scott, who has been firmly tight-lipped about his romantic relationships when queried by the press, also confirmed that Noce was his girlfriend when questioned by
NBC News reporter Nnamdi Egwuonwu who first asked, “Any special guests with you today?” “All my guests are special,” Scott first responded before confirming. But he offered nothing more than the information that they had been seeing each other “for a year or so”.
The appearance of Scott’s girlfriend caused many online to register shock at the timing. Others took the opportunity to note that Noce’s presence seemed to be more of a highlight for Scott than his remarks at the debate. The moment also prompted others to speculate if their relationship was truly real, making comparisons of Scott to fellow South Carolina senator
Lindsay Graham. Tim Scott is still viewed as an underdog in the race to be the GOP’s 2024 presidential nominee, despite some strong fundraising numbers.
We’ve put together some of the more notable online reactions to Tim Scott’s new paramour below.
