Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, announced his 2026 candidacy for U.S. Senate Monday, presenting himself as a moderate progressive in a bid to take the seat of retiring Republican Sen. Thom Tillis.
Cooper is seeking to win in a state that has not sent a Democrat to the Senate since 2008 but has tended to elect Democrats to state-level offices in recent history.
“When you made me your governor, we balanced the state budget every year and worked with Republicans to raise teacher pay, recruit thousands of better paying jobs, and expand Medicaid,” Cooper says in his announcement.
But Cooper’s announcement also has teeth, as he harshly criticizes the “big, beautiful bill” just passed by the Republican Congress—which extends President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts and restructures the Medicaid program.
The outgoing Republican Sen. Tillis was one of three GOP senators to vote against the massive legislation.
“Politicians in D.C. are running up our debt, ripping away our health care, disrespecting our veterans, cutting help for the poor, and even putting Medicare and Social Security at risk just to give tax breaks to billionaires,” Cooper says in the TV spot as he takes a more aggressive tone. “That’s wrong, and I’ve had enough.”
In a likely preview of how conservatives will combat Cooper’s messaging, the Senate Leadership Fund—a pro-Republican political action committee—has already launched an online messaging campaign against Cooper.
“While Washington Democrats toast themselves for convincing a far-left career politician to seek another taxpayer job, we’ll be reminding North Carolina voters about the families Radical Roy Cooper devastated,” the group wrote in a statement shortly after Cooper’s announcement.
The group’s materials criticize Cooper’s allegedly “botched response to Hurricane Helene,” as well as his policies on taxes and “gender-affirming care for children.”
Analysts had already expected Cooper to enter the race. Rep. Greg Murphy, R-N.C., who represents much of North Carolina’s coastal area, previously suggested to The Daily Signal that a compromising, yet conservative, Republican would be best to oppose him.
“We need to have a Republican that can beat the presumed nominee of the Democrat Party, Roy Cooper, who’s the former governor,” he said. “Someone who understands how to navigate in a bipartisan manner. But in a conservative, bipartisan manner so that we keep the Senate and we can actually do things that are good for the country.”
If he secures his party’s nomination, Cooper could face off against Michael Whatley, the chair of the Republican National Committee whom Trump recently appeared to endorse for the race. Whatley, however, has yet to formally announce a run for the seat.
