Prime Highlights
- Former North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper announces candidacy for 2026 Senate.
- The seat is vacant as Republican Sen. Thom Tillis is retiring, heating up the contest.
Key Fact
- Democratic Party’s top contender is six-time statewide election winner Cooper.
- GOP unites behind RNC Chair Michael Whatley as their candidate.
Key Background
Two-term Democratic North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has formally joined the 2026 U.S. Senate race. His candidacy creates a highly competitive Senate contest in one of the nation’s most politically closely followed battleground states. Cooper left little doubt about what was at stake in his launch video, attributing policy blunders in Washington to the nation’s capital that disadvantaged regular Americans like cutting Social Security and Medicaid and adding to the federal debt.
Cooper’s candidacy comes after Republican Sen. Thom Tillis’s surprise retirement, who has grown more out of touch with his party since his votes against sweeping spending measures. His departure has left North Carolina with a skinny open-seat race, a state that has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 2008. Cooper, with an excellent record of bipartisan leadership and six statewide wins already under his belt, is the Democrats’ best bet to turn the seat.
During his political life, Cooper has gained a reputation for pragmatic governance. As an attorney general and governor, he gained a reputation for pursuing fraud, growing Medicaid, and balancing the state budget. In his kick-off campaign, his message was one of fighting for working families, respect for veterans, and safeguarding critical services from political cynicism. He realized that although Washington was never on his radar screen, the time demands leaders with genuine results and strong state connections.
On the Republican side, Republicans are unifying behind Michael Whatley, the Republican National Committee chair and longtime Trump ally. Whatley is poised to engage in a well-funded campaign with support from national conservatives. Cooper will be opposed by a well-organized primary challenge from former Congressman Wiley Nickel, though it remains to be seen whether Nickel will remain in the race.
This Senate election has the potential to be a tipping vote in who holds the chamber with Democrats seeking to close the GOP 53–47 lead. Cooper’s bid redraws the calculus and ensures North Carolina will be one of the marquee 2026 contests.
