Roy Cooper, Michael Whatley set to compete for a high stakes North Carolina US senate seat
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Former Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper will face former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley in the state's toss-up U.S. Senate race. (Image credit: Ben Giles | NPR)
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Elections Roy Cooper, Michael Whatley set to compete for a high stakes North Carolina US senate seat March 3, 2026 8:53 PM ET Stephen Fowler Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley has won the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in North Carolina's primary election. Ben Giles | NPR hide caption toggle caption Ben Giles | NPR The matchup in one of the most competitive U.S. Senate races in the 2026 midterms is set, as Democrat Roy Cooper and Republican Michael Whatley clinched their parties' primary nominations Tuesday. That's according to AP race calls in the Democratic and GOP primaries. Cooper, the state's popular former governor, is hoping to flip the seat held by outgoing Republican Sen. Thom Tillis. He'll face former Republican National Committee chairman Michael Whatley, whom President Trump endorsed for that position.A victory for Cooper and Democrats in the battleground of North Carolina is nearly essential for the party to potentially regain control of the Senate. As control of Congress hangs in the balance this November, North Carolina's Republican-controlled legislature pushed to further gerrymander the state's Congressional districts in an effort to retain the House majority. Republicans hold 10 of North Carolina's 14 U.S. House districts, with only one of them nominally competitive in a typical year. Still, the state is one of a few national battlegrounds where voters have split their ticket recently, supporting Trump when he campaigned for reelection and electing Democrat Josh Stein as governor in 2024 to replace Cooper. Historically, the party in power typically loses ground during midterm elections, and with Trump facing record low approval ratings, there are several primary results that could have an impact on control of Congress after November's general election. Here are some of the key races the NPR Network are monitoring tonight: North Carolina's 4th District As the Democratic Party searches for its national identity in th...
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