With Tillis out, lawmakers and experts weigh in on competitive NC Senate race
Good morning and welcome to Under the Dome. I’m Sophia Bailly with the latest political news across North Carolina.
Today’s newsletter is about the elephant in the room: the fallout from Sen. Thom Tillis’ decision not to run for reelection.
The decision has led to GOP disagreement over who the strongest Republican candidate will be for what is expected to be a competitive race Democrats will fight tooth and nail for.
On Tuesday, North Carolina’s speaker of the House, Destin Hall, joined the online discourse over Tillis’ announcement.
“The NC Senate race is too important to be derailed by a messy, divisive primary. The real fight is against the radical left destroying our country,” Hall’s post read.
Potential GOP contenders include Lara Trump, President Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law and a former North Carolina resident, and former Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who unsuccessfully ran for governor.
“We must unify behind whoever President Trump picks and send a conservative fighter to DC. Let’s get to work and defeat the Democrats,” Hall’s post continued.
Speaking of Tillis…
TILLIS VS. TRUMP: A BRIEF HISTORY
Tillis has long been a contentious figure in the Republican Party, especially in the Trump era. The president is known for ousting those who disagree with him and picking favorites based on loyalty.
Tillis does not fit that mold.
He reportedly worked within his party to get Republicans to vote against Trump’s U.S. secretary of defense nominee, Pete Hegseth. He didn’t get far, and after Trump threatened to find a primary challenger for Tillis over the kerfuffle in February, Tillis flipped his vote.
Tillis also worked against Trump’s top pick for DC prosecutor, Ed Martin, leading Trump to pull Martin’s nomination. Tillis had concerns about Martin’s actions related to defendants in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, which Tillis has consistently labeled as wrong.
Now, the senator has voted against Trump’s top legislative priority, arguing the megabill will devastate rural North Carolina and hospitals. More than 3 million North Carolinians use Medicaid for health insurance.
The N&O’s Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi breaks down how the proposed federal cuts to Medicaid could impact North Carolina.
The Senate passed its version of the bill Tuesday afternoon with a 50-50 tie broken by Vice President JD Vance. It now heads to the House.
North Carolina’s other U.S. senator, Republican Ted Budd, supported Trump’s bill “because the people of North Carolina deserve more of their hard-earned wages, a more secure border, a reinvigorated military, responsible spending reforms for government programs, and a thriving economy,” he said in an online statement.
As of Tuesday evening, he had not publicly commented on Tillis’ decision not to run for a third term.
GOV. JOSH STEIN ON ROY COOPER AND THE ‘BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’
The race to fill Tillis’ seat is expected to be a toss-up, experts say.
And The N&O’s Ronni Butts reports former Gov. Roy Cooper, if he runs, is seen as likely to make the seat competitive for Democrats, who have not held a North Carolina Senate seat since 2008.
North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein praised the possibility of Cooper running for U.S. Senate after a bill signing Tuesday.
“I think the world of Roy Cooper,” Stein, a Democrat, told reporters at a press conference in the Executive Mansion. “He has served the state so well in everything he’s ever done. I think he’d be an incredible U.S. senator, but obviously it’s his choice to decide to run or not.”
Stein also laid into Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” saying the bill is a “travesty” that could cost hundreds of thousands of North Carolinians health coverage and food benefits as well as the loss of thousands of jobs in the clean energy industry.
“This bill is anything but beautiful,” Stein said. “It’s ugly. It’s bad. It’s going to have devastating consequences to this state.”
– T. Keung Hui
BURR WEIGHS IN
Republican Richard Burr, who represented North Carolina in the Senate from 2005 to 2023, applauded Tillis’ impact on their home state.
“From working for federal recognition for the Lumbee Tribe to confirming conservative federal judges, I saw up close Thom Tillis’ commitment to the voters of North Carolina. As he prepares to wind down his career in the Senate, a process I am well familiar with, I wish Thom and Susan all the best moving forward,” Burr said in a statement.
“I know firsthand that time spent with grandchildren is a greater reward than grinding out long days on Capitol Hill or the campaign trail.”
WHAT ELSE WE’RE WORKING ON
The Senate stripped out most cuts to Pell Grants from Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill.” The Charlotte Observer’s Rebecca Noel reports that an earlier version of the bill could have affected about one-third of North Carolina college students.
Today’s newsletter was by Sophia Bailly, T. Keung Hui and Danielle Battaglia. Check your inbox Thursday for more #ncpol.
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