Democrat Roy Cooper has won the United States Senate seat in North Carolina, defeating Republican Michael Whatley in the midterm elections held on 3 November. The final count gave Cooper 2,462,277 votes to Whatley's 1,640,020 votes, about 60 percent to 40 percent, with 99.96 percent of precincts reporting. The race was called on election night at about 8:23 pm Eastern time.

An open seat after Tillis retired

The seat was open because Republican Senator Thom Tillis retired rather than seeking a third term, after breaking with Donald Trump over Medicaid cuts in the president's tax and spending law. North Carolina is a state that voted for Trump in 2016, 2020 and 2024, which made the contest one of the most closely watched Senate races of the night.

Cooper, 69, is a former two-term governor of North Carolina, serving from 2017 to 2025, and previously served as the state's attorney general. He has been in state politics since he was first elected to the state House in 1986. His campaign focused on the rising costs of food, energy, housing and healthcare.

Whatley, backed by Trump, trailed throughout

Whatley, a former chair of the Republican National Committee, was backed and hand-picked by Trump and campaigned alongside the president in North Carolina. He had never held elected office. He trailed Cooper in the polls through the campaign, with the final East Carolina University survey putting Cooper ahead by nine points, and a major Republican super PAC pulled funding from North Carolina in October.

Early returns on election night had Cooper ahead by about 66.8 percent to 31.6 percent, and the margin narrowed as counting finished, ending at about 60 percent to 40 percent.

One flip, but not a Senate majority on its own

Republicans entered election night with a 53-47 majority in the Senate, so Democrats needed a net gain of four seats for control. Cooper's flip was one gain, alongside South Carolina, and one seat alone does not deliver a majority.

In South Carolina, Democrat Annie Andrews became the first Democrat to win a Senate seat there since 1998, defeating Trump's backed candidate Darline Graham.

In his victory speech, Cooper spoke of "chaos and corruption in Washington" and pledged to work on making healthcare, housing and groceries more affordable.