(The Center Square) – First quarter donations are $5 million for Republican Michael Whatley’s quest to win a U.S. Senate seat from North Carolina, his campaign says.
The campaign said $16 million has been raised since the launch in late July.
“Michael Whatley has the backing of North Carolina and the momentum to defeat Roy Cooper this November,” said Communications Director D.J. Griffin of the Whatley campaign. “The support for our campaign is a clear rebuke of Roy Cooper’s failed liberal agenda. North Carolinians are tired of his pro-criminal policies, his sanctuary city agenda, his failures on public safety, and his repeated attacks on working families – vetoing common-sense tax cuts and voting for tax hikes. North Carolinians deserve a senator who will be an ally to President Trump, fight to bring down prices, cut taxes, and keep our communities safe.”
The campaign is expected to set a Senate record for spending, rising to the neighborhood of $750 million to $1 billion. Whatley’s campaign earlier this month got a $71 million push from the Senate Leadership Fund; Cooper’s campaign last month took a slice from $50 million from the Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy.
The back-and-forth is expected to continue heating up into the summer.
At the Federal Elections Commission website, statistics on file go only to Feb. 11. Whatley is listed with more than $2.5 million cash on hand. Cooper’s cash on hand, also through Feb. 11, is listed at $14.2 million.
In the past month, polling has included Whatley drawing within the margin of error and into a statistical tie with Cooper in one poll while trailing another by 14%.
For trends, Cooper individually hasn’t lost a statewide election. Democrats winning Senate seats in the state, however, is a different challenge.
The late Kay Hagan in 2008 was the last Democrat to win a Senate seat in the state. The last Democrats to win midterms were John Edwards in 1998 and Terry Sanford in 1986. Republicans are 5-0 in Senate elections since Hagan’s triumph.
Republicans in all statewide races for this decade – 2020, 2022 and 2024 – are 32-10 against Democrats, a party with significantly declining voter registrations for more than 20 consecutive years.
