Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley has thrown his hat into the ring for a crucial Senate seat in North Carolina, setting the stage for a high-stakes showdown in 2026. With President Donald Trump's backing, Whatley aims to fill the void left by retiring Sen. Thom Tillis in a state known for tight races.
According to Fox News, Whatley announced his candidacy Thursday in Gastonia, his hometown, just a week after Trump urged him to run. The RNC chair faces a formidable opponent in former two-term Gov. Roy Cooper, who declared his own bid four days earlier as the Democrats’ top recruit for this cycle.
Whatley didn’t waste time drawing battle lines, telling supporters, "President Trump deserves an ally, and North Carolina deserves a strong conservative voice in the Senate." While the sentiment sounds noble, it’s clear this race will test whether Trump’s influence can still rally the base in a state that’s increasingly purple and prone to splitting tickets.
The clash between Whatley and Cooper is already billed as a marquee Senate race, likely to be among the most expensive in U.S. history. Whatley himself predicted to Fox News Digital, "We will be the most expensive Senate race in the history of the country," signaling a fundraising war ahead.
Cooper, with six statewide wins under his belt, including two terms as governor, pulled in a staggering $3.4 million in just 24 hours after launching his campaign. That kind of cash haul shows Democrats are ready to pour everything into flipping this GOP-held seat, currently part of the Republicans’ 53-47 Senate majority.
Whatley, undeterred, stressed his intent to work all 100 counties in North Carolina to tell a Republican story of listening to voters and offering solutions. Yet, with Cooper’s proven track record, Whatley’s ground game will need to be more than just talk if he hopes to counter the Democrat’s deep roots and name recognition.
Whatley came out swinging in his Gastonia speech, linking Cooper to far-left Democratic figures like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, claiming, "Roy Cooper may pretend to be different from the radical extremists that run today’s Democrat Party, but he is all in on their agenda." It’s a clever jab, but painting a six-time statewide winner as an extremist might be a hard sell to moderates who’ve backed Cooper before.
The Cooper campaign fired back, with manager Jeff Allen calling Whatley "a D.C. insider and big oil lobbyist" whose policies harm middle-class families by stripping healthcare and raising costs. Such accusations aim to frame Whatley as out of touch, though they conveniently ignore Cooper’s own ties to national Democratic priorities that often clash with North Carolina’s more centrist leanings.
Democrats also preempted Whatley’s announcement, with DNC communications director Rosemary Boeglin arguing that Whatley’s alignment with Trump’s agenda is a "toxic" burden. While the rhetoric is sharp, it sidesteps the reality that Trump has won North Carolina three times, suggesting his brand still carries weight with many voters here.
Whatley’s rise to RNC chair in March 2024, handpicked by Trump, underscores the president’s heavy influence in this race, especially after Trump called Tillis’ retirement announcement "great news." Tillis, often a critic of Trump, drew the president’s ire for opposing a major spending and tax cut bill, revealing intra-party tensions that Whatley will need to navigate.
Initially, Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump, a North Carolina native and former RNC co-chair, was considered for the seat, but she recently declined to run after family discussions. Her decision clears the path for Whatley, though it raises questions about whether Trump’s first choice stepping aside signals any hesitation about the race’s winnability.
Whatley’s tenure as state GOP chair for five years before moving to the national stage gives him a local foundation, but his D.C. role could be spun as a liability by opponents. Balancing Trump’s endorsement with the need to appeal to independent voters will be his tightrope act in a state where partisan loyalty is often tested.
As this Senate race heats up, both candidates are framing it as a referendum on competing visions for North Carolina, with Whatley promising a return to Republican principles of addressing voter concerns directly. His assertion to Fox News that "we understand the issues that they care about, and we put solutions on a table" will need concrete policy to back it up against Cooper’s established record.
Cooper’s early financial edge and statewide experience make him a heavyweight, but Whatley’s alignment with Trump could energize a GOP base hungry to maintain Senate control. The question remains whether voters will see Whatley as a fresh conservative voice or just another extension of a polarizing national figure.
With millions in campaign funds already flowing and sharp elbows thrown on both sides, North Carolina is poised for a bruising battle that could shape the Senate’s balance of power. This isn’t just a race; it’s a test of whether local roots or national endorsements will sway a battleground state tired of progressive overreach yet wary of partisan gridlock.
