RALEIGH, N.C. — Former Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, has won North Carolina’s open Senate seat, defeating Republican Michael Whatley in one of the most closely watched races in the country, the Associated Press reported.
The AP called the race at 8:24 p.m. ET on Tuesday, minutes after the last polling places closed under extended hours in parts of the state. It is the first Senate seat to change parties on election night, and it makes Cooper the first Democrat to win a Senate race in North Carolina since Kay Hagan won in 2008.
The first returns reported by the state board of elections gave Cooper about two votes for every one for Whatley. His lead narrowed as more votes were counted, but he stayed in front all night. The result stays unofficial until the state certifies it on Nov. 13.
A seat left open
The seat opened when Republican Sen. Thom Tillis chose not to run again after two terms. Tillis broke with President Donald Trump last year over the Medicaid cuts in the president’s tax and spending law, then announced his retirement. North Carolina will now have one Democratic senator and one Republican senator.
Cooper told supporters in Raleigh that the campaign was over and the work was starting. “Tonight the campaign ends but tomorrow the work of governing begins,” he said. He promised to work on the cost of health care, housing and groceries. On X, he wrote: “North Carolina — I’m grateful for your trust. We have more in common than divides us. Here’s to building better days ahead!”
North Carolina — I’m grateful for your trust. We have more in common than divides us. Here’s to building better days ahead!
— Roy Cooper (@RoyCooperNC) November 3, 2026
Whatley conceded the race on Tuesday night, according to WLOS.
Who is Roy Cooper?
Roy Cooper at a campaign rally in April 2026. Photo: NetwonsBucket / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Cooper, 69, grew up in Nashville, North Carolina, and studied at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He served 16 years as the state’s attorney general, winning that office four times, then two terms as governor, from 2017 to 2025. As governor he led the state through the Covid pandemic and three major hurricanes. Tuesday’s win was his seventh statewide victory; he has never lost a statewide race. His campaign ran on a short promise: make stuff cost less.
Who is Michael Whatley?
Michael Whatley. Photo: Gage Skidmore / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).
Whatley, 58, was raised in the North Carolina mountains and lives in Gaston County. He is a lawyer who worked in President George W. Bush’s Energy Department and later as chief of staff to Sen. Elizabeth Dole. He led the North Carolina Republican Party from 2019 to 2024, then the Republican National Committee from March 2024 until August 2025, when he stepped down to run for the Senate with President Trump’s support. He had never held an elected office.
What it means for the Senate
Republicans went into election night holding the Senate 53 to 47. Democrats need a net gain of four seats to take control. Cooper’s win is the first step, not the finish: control of the Senate, like control of the House, had still not been called late Tuesday. Every verified call is on Zark News’ Election Results 2026 page.
