A new poll of the North Carolina Senate election points to a close race between former Governor Roy Cooper and Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley in what is likely to be one of the most competitive of the 2026 midterms. Matt Mercer, a North Carolina GOP spokesperson, told Newsweek that the poll should be "alarming for Democrats ."

President Donald Trump declared last week on social media that Gastonia’s Michael Whatley would “make an unbelievable senator” for North Carolina. On Thursday, Whatley, chairman of the Republican National Committee, is set to officially announce his U.S. Senate campaign from his hometown of Gastonia, according to his campaign.