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Telegraph
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Lara Trump could replace Thom Tillis. But does she really want to?
Donald Trump has a line he likes to use on Lara Trump. She's the only person he knows who has twice had the chance to be a senator, and has twice passed it up, according to her own telling of the story. Now she has a third opportunity. After Thom Tillis, the Republican senator for North Carolina, announced he would not be running for re-election after clashing with the president over his 'big, beautiful bill'. 'How many times do you get the chance to be a senator?' said a source who knows the family, and confirmed that Mrs Trump is seriously considering a run. 'You can't really turn it down a third time.' In the past she has said her young family comes first, opting out of running for the Senate in North Carolina in 2022 and ruling herself out of taking Florida's vacant seat last year when Marco Rubio became Donald Trump's secretary of state. But as a North Carolina native, who knows the issues and rivalries that drive state politics, and with the ear of a president at the peak of his powers she may not get a better opportunity. 'There's a genuine feeling that she's one of us,' said Jonathan Felts, a Republican consultant in the state. 'That, combined with the 100 per cent name recognition and the ability to raise money, that's a nice advantage.' There are other likely contenders. Michael Whatley, former party chairman, and Congressman Pat Harrigan are among a field of possible candidates weighing their options. The state is a keenly contested battleground. Mr Trump may have taken it three times and Republicans hold the Senate seats, but it has a Democratic governor and the party sees it as a must-win opportunity if they are to flip the upper chamber to their control. Mrs Trump, 42, has yet to discuss her plans. 'I don't think she gets into it if she can't win,' said Mr Felts. 'But it's hers if she wants it.' Mrs Trump spent her early life in North Carolina. She was born in Wilmington, and was educated at a local high school before studying communications at North Carolina State University. She married Mr Trump's second son Eric in 2014, and entered politics as an adviser to her father-in-law's 2016 presidential campaign. Her first potential shot at the Senate came in 2021 when one of North Carolina's seats opened up. 'It would be an incredible thing. It's my home state, a state I love so much, and look, I think we need some strong Republicans in Washington DC. We had a great run with the Senate and the House this go-round, but you know, let's see what happens,' she told Fox News in 2022. Eventually she decided against running. Since then her political star has only grown. She served as co-chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, driving fundraising efforts during the 2024 election, silencing doubters who wondered if she only got the job because of her second name. But again, at the end of last year, she announced she did not want to be considered for Mr Rubio's vacant seat in Florida. She explained that her brother and sister-in-law, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, had warned her of the pressures facing a young family in Washington. 'It was tough on them personally, but it was really tough on their family,' she told Time magazine earlier this year. 'Even if I decided to move my whole family, dogs and all, up to Washington DC, I still think that it probably would have been a big challenge for my kids and for us as a whole.' Her son Luke is seven and daughter Carolina is five, and the family live most of the year in Jupiter, Florida, about a 30-minute drive from the president's 'winter White House' of Mar-a-Lago, in West Palm Beach. The seat in North Carolina is available after Mr Tillis, seen as a centrist, announced that he would not be seeking re-election. Mr Trump had threatened to back any Republican who challenged him next year in revenge for the way the senator voted against his signature domestic policy bill. However, her name has been in the mix for months. Victory Insights, a polling firm, tested her in a field of Republicans for the party nomination. It found that she would have demolished Mr Tillis in a hypothetical Republican primary race, winning almost 65 per cent of the vote to his 11 per cent. Although she would trail the strongest possible Democratic candidate in the election itself, she could turn out 'low-propensity' Trump supporters 'To our knowledge, Lara Trump has not publicly expressed any interest in running for this seat, but if she does, she could be a very formidable candidate, both in the primary election and the general election,' the pollsters concluded. Trump loyalists are delighted at the prospect of having her in the Senate. At present the party holds a 53 to 47 majority, which means it cannot afford to lose more than two votes on any issue. 'With this narrow Senate majority any single member can have a big impact as far as holding up legislation or being an impediment to the advancement of the Maga agenda,' said Michael Johns. 'And I think she would be reliable, and then on that basis alone, I think she becomes an appealing candidate.'
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
NC Sen. Thom Tillis' isn't running for 3rd term. What Trump, others are saying
North Carolina Republican U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis made an unexpected decision not to seek a third term Sunday morning. And it drew a sharp reaction from President Donald Trump: 'Great News! 'Senator' Thom Tillis will not be seeking reelection.' The day before, the Republican president had threatened to find a primary-election challenger to Tillis — a former speaker of the state House — over his opposition to Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill.' The Huntersville resident argued the bill would hurt hospitals and rural North Carolinians with its Medicaid cuts. On his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump posted Saturday night saying he was already planning to meet with possible candidates in the weeks ahead to challenge Tillis for the 2026 midterms. 'Thom Tillis is making a BIG MISTAKE for America, and the Wonderful People of North Carolina!' Trump wrote in another Truth Social post Saturday night. The next morning, Tillis announced it was 'not a hard choice' to take a step back and focus on family. Attention was already on the upcoming race for Tillis' Senate seat, which is sure to be an indicator of Trump's favorability among North Carolina voters. Democrats are preparing to prioritize the campaign for the Republican-held seat in what is certain to be a costly midterm. North Carolina is a swing state, but has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 2008. A Democratic political action committee, Senate Majority PAC, jumped on Tillis' announcement as an opportunity for change. The PAC's main objective is to win Senate races for Democratic candidates. 'Democrats were poised to win in North Carolina whether Thom Tillis' name was on the ballot in November 2026 or not. But his early retirement proves there is no space within the Republican party to dissent over taking health care away from 11.8 million people by destroying Medicaid and raising costs,' a spokesperson for the PAC, Lauren French, said in a press release. However, the National Republican Senatorial Committee's chairman, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, said in a press release that after more than a decade of GOP representation in the Senate, North Carolina Republicans' hold on Tillis' seat would not be going away. Trump also won the state in the past three presidential elections. 'That streak will continue in 2026 when North Carolinians elect a conservative leader committed to advancing an agenda of opportunity, prosperity, and security,' the press release said. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, weighed in on X, saying that despite their political differences, he supported Tillis in voting against the 'big beautiful bill.' 'The Republican Party today is a cult. Either you do as Trump wants, or you're out,' Sanders said. 'Pathetic.' Closer to home, Democratic Reps. Alma Adams of Charlotte and Deborah Ross of Raleigh both had positive things to say about Tillis, too. Ross commended Tillis' time in the U.S. Senate and praised his decision to deny Trump's megabill as 'putting his commitment to the people of North Carolina above his loyalty to the leaders of the Republican Party.' 'It is imperative that our next senator is someone who will hold President Trump and his administration accountable,' her statement said. Adams said she wanted to commend Tillis 'for his courage and commitment in doing the right thing for our country.' His vote 'was a teachable moment to our youth about the importance of putting country before yourself,' she said. North Carolina's former lieutenant governor, Republican Mark Robinson, was aligned with the MAGA wing of the GOP and often feuded with Tillis before losing the race for governor last year. Robinson responded to a post on X that said Tillis' decision to step down 'is the final nail in the coffin of the North Carolina Republican Party of years passed [sic].' 'I couldn't have said it better,' Robinson said. North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson added on X that 'the time was right' for Tillis to step down. Trump's bill would be devastating to North Carolina, he added.
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Republicans and Democrats to duke it out for North Carolina Senate seat
Democrats just scored a massive new pickup opportunity in North Carolina. Republicans are determined not to let them have it. GOP Sen. Thom Tillis' abrupt retirement announcement Sunday has blown the door open for potential juggernaut candidates on both sides of the aisle. Democratic former Gov. Roy Cooper plans to make a decision this summer on whether he'll mount a bid, according to a person close to him and granted anonymity to disclose private conversations. Democrats widely believe the popular former governor would give the party its best chance of winning the competitive seat. Meanwhile, former Rep. Wiley Nickel is already running. The GOP side could become a family affair for Donald Trump after he called for Tillis' ouster for voting against the megabill. Lara Trump, the president's daughter-in-law and past co-chair of the Republican National Committee, is 'taking a strong look' at the race and will have the family's support if she chooses to run, according to a person close to the Trumps and granted anonymity to speak candidly about their internal discussions. Another person said Trump was still likely to meet with all the GOP candidates. The White House also considers RNC Chair Michael Whatley, a former North Carolina GOP chair, a strong candidate, per a Republican operative granted anonymity to describe internal thinking. And some in Trump's orbit are promoting Rep. Pat Harrigan, according to a person close to his political operation. Asked if he would back a successor, Tillis sidestepped the question on Sunday night. "Dependent upon whether or not President Trump endorses somebody it could be an open primary," Tillis said. "He could close it out and the party could get behind it, I suspect that's what they do. I just really hope he has some discernment because obviously Mark Robinson was a bad pick." North Carolina, a perennial battleground since Barack Obama turned it blue in 2008, has largely eluded Democrats ever since. Making the state even more tantalizing, Democrats have generally won governorships. Cooper is considered particularly formidable, winning the governorship in 2016 and 2020 — when Trump also won the state. Similarly, Democratic Gov. Josh Stein last year beat scandal-ridden GOP Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson to succeed Cooper even as Kamala Harris lost the state. But Democrats haven't won a Senate seat here in nearly two decades — and Tillis ousted that Democrat, Kay Hagan, to take it back in 2014. Among the more moderate Republicans in the Senate and an increasingly rare example of a GOP lawmaker willing to break with Trump, Tillis was one of the party's most vulnerable incumbents. Now his retirement is giving Democrats an even riper target. 'An open seat is a totally different ball game than a Thom Tillis seat in terms of flippability,' said a senior Democratic aide granted anonymity to speak candidly. 'That will be a blue seat come 2026.' North Carolina could become a rare bright spot for Democrats on what is otherwise a very difficult Senate map. They're defending a trio of competitive open seats, and their only offensive opportunities going into the cycle ran headlong into formidable incumbents like Tillis and Sen. Susan Collins of Maine. 'It just shows you that the Republicans' majority is at risk because their Big, Ugly Bill is so unpopular, not just in North Carolina but throughout the country,' Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement. All eyes are now on Cooper. The person close to the former governor said Tillis' announcement 'doesn't really change anything' about Cooper's own calculations, arguing that whoever emerges from the Republican primary will have either voted or voiced support for the Medicaid cuts that Tillis has criticized. 'This has always been a personal decision [for Cooper],' the person said. 'He's always believed that he could win and that he gave Democrats the best chance to win. None of that has changed this afternoon.' Tillis' decision to head for the exit is the latest sign that the GOP faces a difficult midterm battle on multiple fronts. The move comes less than 48 hours after reports emerged that centrist Rep. Don Bacon intends to announce his retirement Monday, opening up a swing seat in Nebraska in one of only three GOP-held districts Kamala Harris won in the 2024 presidential election. And Republicans are already poised to spend heavily in a bitter Senate primary in Texas between Sen. John Cornyn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton, potentially forcing the party to divert resources from more competitive races elsewhere. Still, the path back to Senate control — gaining four seats — remains narrow for Democrats. Even if the party flips North Carolina's Senate seat, they would have to wrest back control of redder territory like Iowa or Ohio and unseat Collins in Maine to have any chance at a majority. And they still face expensive, competitive races to defend Senate seats in Michigan and Georgia, states Trump won in 2024, while protecting open seats in Minnesota and New Hampshire, too. That has led Democrats to look further afield for a path to a majority, with some in the party staking their hopes on winning Texas' Senate seat if Paxton, a controversial MAGA darling, becomes Republicans' nominee. But Democrats haven't held a Senate seat in the Lone Star State in over three decades. Tillis spent the week issuing increasingly dire warnings to his Republican colleagues that the party could lose seats — including his own — if it continued to pursue controversial changes to Medicaid, likening the public health care program to the political albatross the Affordable Care Act was for Democrats in 2014. Those concerns drove him to take a procedural vote against the megabill Saturday evening. Trump responded by threatening to find someone to primary Tillis, exposing the increasingly strained relationship between the senator, the White House and Senate GOP leadership as Tillis pushed back against the bill. "With Donald Trump in the White House voting against his agenda, seems like either a decision to retire or suicidal," said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.). The president on Sunday took a victory lap after the senator said he wouldn't run again: 'Great News! 'Senator' Thom Tillis will not be seeking reelection,' he posted on Truth Social. Before the post Tillis said he texted Trump, "He probably needed to start looking for a replacement." "I told him I want to help him. I hope that we get a good candidate, that I can help, and we can have a successful 2026," Tillis recounted Sunday night. One GOP strategist, granted anonymity to describe private conversations, said Republicans were breathing a 'sigh of relief' that Tillis was retiring, believing that a fresh candidate would better appeal to the voters as the incumbent butted heads with the president and showed a sagging favorability rating in polls. Democrats argue Republicans' support for Medicaid cuts give Cooper in particular an opening. 'He was obviously instrumental in getting Medicaid expansion here in the state and this bill will threaten it,' said Doug Wilson, a Democratic strategist who was an adviser on Kamala Harris' campaign in North Carolina. 'This gives him a lane to run on. Not only did he help implement it, it was something he has pushed for since his first term.' Nickel is the most prominent of the Democrats to announce a campaign so far. He's hinted at a Senate bid ever since being redistricted out of his House seat last cycle and has expressed confidence in his chances against whichever Republican candidate emerges. 'No matter which MAGA loyalist Donald Trump hand-picks to run in North Carolina, I'm the Democrat who's ready to take them on and win. I've flipped a tough seat before and we're going to do it again,' he said in a statement to POLITICO. Still, flipping North Carolina isn't a done deal for Democrats either. 'People forget that North Carolina Senate races are always close,' North Carolina-based Republican strategist Doug Heye said. 'There hasn't been a double-digit Senate win since 1974.' Rachael Bade, Jordain Carney, Meredith Lee Hill, Calen Razor and Andrew Howard contributed to this report.
