Lara Trump, RNC Chair Whatley emerge on shortlist as replacement for retiring GOP NC Sen Tillis

Lara Trump, RNC Chair Whatley Emerge on Shortlist as Replacement for Retiring GOP NC Sen Tillis - The Pennsylvania Daily Star

North Carolina GOP Sen. Thom Tillis's announcement Sunday that he will not seek 2026 reelection has resulted in the expected shortlist of likely Republican candidates to replace him – including marque names Lara Trump and Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley.   Tillis announced his retirement after voting against advancing President Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" in the Senate on Saturday evening, then Trump vowing to fie…

Lara Trump, RNC Chair Whatley Emerge on Shortlist as Replacement for Retiring GOP NC Sen Tillis | The Star News Network

by Natalia Mittelstadt   North Carolina GOP Sen. Thom Tillis’s announcement Sunday that he will not seek 2026 reelection has resulted in the expected shortlist of likely Republican candidates to replace him – including marque names Lara Trump and Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley. Tillis announced his retirement after voting against advancing President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” in the Senate on Saturday evening, t…

Trump may look to his daughter-in-law to defend Senate seat in key battleground

Trump's influence looms large in North Carolina Senate race after Tillis announces retirement, with Lara Trump, Michael Whatley and Rep. Hudson among potential GOP candidates.

Lara Trump would 'be a disaster for Republicans' — and a 'dream for Dems': Ex-GOP strategist

When the U.S. Senate voted, 51-49, to procedurally advance President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill," there were only two GOP holdouts: Kentucky's Rand Paul and North Carolina's Thom Tillis. Trump wasted no time calling for Tillis to be voted out of office in 2026 via a GOP primary, but Tillis decided to quit rather than risk getting fired: on Sunday, June 29, the conservative senator announced that he won't be seeking reelection.Tillis' de…

Lara Trump, RNC Chair Whatley emerge on shortlist as replacement for retiring GOP NC Sen Tillis

Other possibilities include National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Richard Hudson and North Carolina GOP Rep. Pat Harrigan.