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North Carolina Republicans are anxious for more money to beat Roy Cooper

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3 weeks ago

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North Carolina Republicans have a message for Washington: The cavalry needs to come.

Their Senate nominee, former Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley, is lagging far behind Roy Cooper, the prized Democratic recruit and popular former governor, in polls and cash.

Republicans believe Whatley still has time to turn around those steep deficits — but only if the national GOP opens its deep pockets sooner than later, according to interviews with nearly a dozen North Carolina Republicans and national strategists.

A massive infusion of cash ahead of the typical late summer and early fall spending spree, they say, would combat Whatley’s biggest problem: a lack of name ID.

In a typical midterm year, the state’s Senate race would be a marquee battle. But the Cooper-Whatley matchup has been drowned out by other more high-profile contests in Texas, Maine and Michigan, leaving some in North Carolina anxious for more money and ways to push the national party publicly further into the fight.

“He has an uphill climb,” said Tuesday Sauer, chair of the Bertie County GOP. “Even though he was the RNC chair, a lot of people who aren’t politically involved really don’t know who Michael Whatley is.”

So far the race has been sleepy, focused on bread-and-butter affordability issues that are defining contests across the country. But the low-key nature of the race is hiding just how critical North Carolina is in November. The state, which President Donald Trump carried three times, is a must-win for Democrats frothing at the possibility of flipping the Senate. And in Cooper, Democrats have found a strong candidate to give them a chance at their first Senate win in the state since 2008, thanks to his status as a household name from a political career spanning four decades.

Some Republicans think Whatley, a former state party chair and close Trump ally who is a first-time candidate in his own right, is running a generic campaign that won’t cut it given his blue-chip opponent and the tough national environment.

“Michael Whatley has to give them a reason to talk about North Carolina, and so far he hasn’t. That’s the challenge,” said one GOP state official, granted anonymity to speak freely about the race. “There’s a lot of other races right now that give solid headlines, and right now the headline in North Carolina is: ‘Republican Party plays possum.’”

Cooper raised $13.8 million to Whatley’s $5 million in the first quarter of the year, and the Democrat entered the second quarter with $18.5 million in cash on hand, while Whatley reported having more than $2.5 million in the bank. Some public polling shows Cooper with as much as a 14-point lead over Whatley.

“The strategy is simple. Remind North Carolinians that Roy Cooper is a pro-crime, pro-tax, career politician whose failed leadership made life less safe and less affordable,” Whatley campaign spokesperson DJ Griffin said in a statement. “The campaign is humming, our partners are aligned across the board, and every day from now until Election Day is about one thing: sending Roy Cooper into retirement.”

Then-North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper speaks to the crowd during an event in May 17, 2022, in Raleigh.

Republicans plan to continue hammering Cooper on two major issues: crime and pandemic restrictions. While serving as North Carolina’s top executive during the height of the pandemic, as the virus ripped through prisons, Cooper reached a settlement with civil rights groups to release about 3,500 inmates to reduce overcrowding and health risks. A number of those inmates went on to commit new crimes — and Republicans blame Cooper for being responsible.

Cooper’s team argues that Whatley holds blame for pushing for the prisoners to be released during the pandemic.

“Whatley and his allies have been caught lying time and again, but the truth is Roy Cooper spent his career locking up criminals while Whatley pushed for prisoners to be released during Covid,” said Cooper campaign spokesperson Kate Smart, in a statement.

The race will reveal how fresh those Covid-19 memories are in the minds of voters. Republicans remain angry at Cooper for his pandemic restrictions, like shutting down churches and restricting access to visitors of patients in hospitals.

“At the first chance during Covid, Roy Cooper shut down all the churches, that’s major, while he let the bars remain open,” said state GOP Sen. Steve Jarvis. “It’s been a while, so I think that’s being missed right now. We need to get that back in the news.”

While antsy for the cash to arrive, many Republicans are optimistic that Whatley’s relationships within the party will come in handy.

The GOP-aligned Senate Leadership Fund has committed $71 million to the race and so far has reserved more than $36 million in broadcast ads starting in early September, according to tracking service AdImpact. North Carolina, which contains several major media markets, is one of the more expensive states to run ads.

“If Dems think they have a layup in the only swing state that President Trump is 3-0, they’re out of their minds,” said a national Republican strategist working on the race, granted anonymity to speak candidly about the landscape.

Other PACs, like Old North Action have also reserved a large chunk of ad space this fall. Americans For Prosperity has already doled out more than $8 million this spring, the bulk of which was spent on digital and streaming ads for Whatley. North Carolina Republicans are also optimistic that Whatley will be a major beneficiary of the recent Supreme Court decision allowing political parties to freely coordinate with candidates and spend without constraint, given his stint as RNC chair. Republicans have a massive cash edge over Democrats: The RNC has more than $125 million in the bank, while the DNC has more debt than cash on hand, $18.3 million to $14.8 million.

“The fall of coordinated spending limits means the NRSC can discuss spending decisions directly with our candidates and their campaigns,” said Joanna Rodriguez, communications director at the National Republican Senatorial Committee. “The era of raising the curtain on strategy and press and the Democrats we’re looking to defeat is over.”

“President Trump and Republicans are united behind Michael Whatley, who will be North Carolina’s champion in the US Senate,” said RNC spokesperson Emma Hall, in a statement.

Cooper has his own national money in the pipeline, but so far it doesn’t match the Republican side. WinSenate PAC, affiliated with Schumer-backed Senate Majority PAC, has promised more than $27 million in fall reservations for him.

“The reality of all of it is that between Republican super PACs and the RNC, they just have way more money,” said Morgan Jackson, a longtime North Carolina Democratic strategist and a Cooper adviser. “There’s no white horse coming, the way that Republicans are waiting on their savior to come.”

Still, Republicans’ biggest asset — Trump’s PAC MAGA Inc. — remains tightlipped about its own plans to distribute its massive $350 million warchest.

“That money needs to be brought to North Carolina, so the people of North Carolina can be reminded of what a crappy Governor Roy Cooper was,” said GOP state Sen. Amy Galey.

“Getting his name, face recognition in 100 counties is tough, especially in North Carolina, with just plain geographics of going from Manteo to Murphy,” said GOP state Rep. Donnie Loftis, of Whatley. “It comes down to funding. That money drives your message, and if you don’t have the money, you can’t get your message out there.”

North Carolina Democrats have their own concerns about lagging investments from the national party. Some fear that Cooper’s strong current standing in the race at this juncture will cause party leaders to overlook the state in favor of other shiny objects — like Texas, where Democrat James Talarico appears competitive with Republican Ken Paxton.

“I believe in the Coach K theory,” said Democratic House Minority Leader Robert Rieves, referring to former Duke basketball coaching legend Mike Krzyzewski. “It doesn’t matter how far you are ahead, you keep playing just as hard as you did the first minute.”

Erin Doherty contributed reporting.

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It might take ‘a lightning bolt from God’ to get these Senate Democratic hopefuls to bow for independents

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1 day ago

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August 1, 2026

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Democrats vying for a pair of deep-red Senate seats are facing increasingly desperate calls from within their party to step aside for more promising independent candidates.

But they say they won’t drop out — unless there’s divine intervention.

Democrats Alani Bankhead of Montana and Julian Beaudion of South Dakota both told Blue Light News they have no plans to exit the race, despite pressure from national — and even some state — Democrats to step aside. Numerouspolls, coupled with strongerfundraising and campaign operations, show independents Seth Bodnar and Brian Bengs have a stronger — if still muddied — path to victory in November.

If the Democrats stay on the ballot, it will be almost impossible to claw these seats away from Republicans in Mountain West states that President Donald Trump dominated in 2024.

“I’m a person of faith. If a lightning bolt from God struck me and was like, ‘Alani, get out of the race,’ sure,” Bankhead told Blue Light News when asked if anything would change her mind. Otherwise, she said there’s “absolutely nothing.”

Beaudion has a similar resolve: “To be clear, we are not considering dropping out of the race,” he told Blue Light News.

By digging in, the Democrats could imperil their party’s hopes of regaining Senate control in an already uphill cycle. There’s broad agreement across the many factions of the Democratic Party that a crowded race relinquishes any hope of victory. Bengs has argued that Beaudion remaining on the ballot jeopardizes his chance of winning this fall against GOP Sen. Mike Rounds. Bodnar has maintained he has a viable path either way, and he could be helped out if the Libertarian candidate in the race pulls votes from Republican Kurt Alme.

The deadline to withdraw in South Dakota is Tuesday, and Montana’s is shortly after, on Aug. 10. Democrats across the ideological spectrum in Washington and their home states are calling on Bankhead and Beaudion to step down to help their party bank-shot a Senate majority, with the idea that a victorious independent candidate could caucus with a future Democratic majority — or at least not party up with Republicans.

“The math is inescapable. If it’s impossible for a Democrat to win, it is vital that the Democrats step aside and give the independent at least a shot of beating the Republican,” said Matt Bennett, a co-founder of the centrist Democratic think tank Third Way. “Beating the MAGA Republicans is priorities one, two and three. Who we beat them with is pretty far down the list.”

Democrats have already had some luck setting up one-on-one independent vs. Republican matchups in other Trump-won states. The Democratic candidate in Nebraska withdrew to pave the way for independent Dan Osborn — though an ongoing court case from a Democratic anti-abortion pastor could complicate things. And Idaho’s Democratic nominee recently dropped out in favor of independent Todd Achilles.

“Knowing that your campaign is not gonna break through, and just being able to recognize that is probably the hardest thing of all,” Achilles said of Democrat David Roth’s decision to step down. “I do appreciate what David did in Idaho.”

Bankhead and Beaudion insist they can win, even despite the headwinds. Bankhead expects to ride the anti-incumbency and pro-outsider wave into office, and Beaudion credits his relationships with voters throughout the state.

“Nobody ever knows what’s actually going to happen in an election,” Bankhead said. “The people decide on November 3.”

But Idaho and Nebraska Democrats reached a conclusion that Bankhead and Beaudion did not: The party’s brand is so tarnished in their states that the “D” label on the ballot line provides no viable path to victory.

“I am a professional partisan Democrat, and I have every incentive to be on the Democrat’s side here,” said Pat Dennis, president of American Bridge 21st Century, an opposition-research firm. “But ultimately, the priority is to take the Senate majority away from Republicans. In some states, that path is very difficult to impossible for a Democrat. In those cases, it is both strategically and morally correct to take the path that is most likely to achieve the goal we’re going for.”

Faiz Shakir, a longtime adviser to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), did not go as far as to call for Bankhead and Beaudion to step aside. But he agreed that there’s real opportunity for independents who aren’t stuck with the Democratic brand’s baggage.

“Being someone who’s not associated with the two-party system right now helps you greatly in many parts of this country, particularly those that have much more rural and conservative tendencies,” said Shakir. “There’s frustration and anger with Trump, and there’s not as much of a love and appreciation for the Democratic Party.”

Shakir also said that competitive races in these red areas — even if the independents can’t pull off a win — could force Republicans to pull much-needed resources out of battleground races in order to defend their turf.

But he also offered a warning to his party: Talking too much about the independents’ strong fundraising and establishment backing risks tying them to the “donor class” and turning them “into a worse version of what people assumed of a Democrat.”

“You gotta give them the space to be both independent in mind and in spirit,” he said. “The argument for them is truly that they are building a movement in the state that people are hungry for, and that in the support of those people, they’re finding resonance. And that would be the argument for a Democrat to step aside.”

Republicans, meanwhile, are working to paint the independents and Democrats as one and the same. They’re also trying to elevate the Democrats in an attempt to stop the independents from gaining more traction: Trump on social media attacked Bankhead in July, ignoring Bodnar entirely.

“Democrat-backed independents all support the same socialist policies and middle-class tax hikes that made Democrats toxic across the country,” Joanna Rodriguez, the communications director for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said in a statement. “Republicans will defeat them in November.”

The inside calls for Beaudion and Bankhead to step aside aren’t just coming from Washington. Many local Democrats in Montana and South Dakota have said publicly they should not continue their campaigns. Nancy Keenan, the former executive director of the Montana Democratic Party who has endorsed Bodnar, wrote in a June op-ed that “there is not a viable path for a Democratic victory in this race.”

Bennett, the Third Way co-founder, went further, saying if Democrats fail to flip the Senate in November, the blame would lie at the hands of Bankhead and Beaudion.

“If we fumble away a majority because these no hope candidates are too vain to get out of the race, that’ll be a political calamity,” he said. “These people need to understand that they will become pariahs.”

Bankhead doesn’t see it that way.

“I’m not swayed by it because I’m not here for power and money,” she said. “It’s still the old, rich D.C. powerful political circles that are trying to keep more progressive candidates out of the fight so they can maintain the status quo.”

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FCC chair Brendan Carr on Trump, free speech and his threats against broadcasters

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2 days ago

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July 31, 2026

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FCC chair Brendan Carr on Trump, free speech and his threats against broadcasters

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Mandela Barnes considering dropping out of Wisconsin governor race

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3 days ago

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July 30, 2026

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Former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes and his team are discussing dropping out of the crowded Democratic primary for Wisconsin governor, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter.

The conversations come as Democratic officials in the state brace for damaging media reports about Barnes expected to hit in the coming hours. Barnes and his team have been on calls Thursday to discuss how to proceed, according to the people, granted anonymity to share private details.

The primary had become increasingly messy as more moderate leaning Democrats like Barnes have tried to stave off Democratic socialist Francesca Hong’s rise, worried her victory could boost presumed Republican nominee Tom Tiffany. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers’ endorsement of David Crowley — who reentered the race in the final stretch — further complicated the moderate coalition.

A spokesperson for Barnes’ campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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