Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper led Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley by 6 percentage points in the first major poll of the 2026 North Carolina Senate race. The Emerson College poll,

Former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper will run for the U.S. Senate in North Carolina, giving Democrats a proven statewide winner in an open-seat race that is expected to be one of the most competitive 2026 contests.

A new Victory Insights poll of the North Carolina Senate election points to a close race between former Governor Roy Cooper and Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Michael Whatley, while an Emerson College poll gives Cooper a lead in what is likely to be one of the most competitive of the 2026 midterms.