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This year’s U.S. Senate race is abnormal, in more ways than one. While Democrats haven’t run a successful Senate campaign in N.C. since 2008, two-term former Gov. Roy Cooper enjoys enormous name recognition—not to mention the benefit of a midterm broadly expected to skew blue.
Republican Michael Whatley, conversely, has never run for public office. While many of his partymates know him from his time as head of the North Carolina Republican Party, and later the national GOP, he’s a new face to pretty much everyone else in the state.
It’s the kind of matchup many would be eager to see on a debate stage—that is, everyone but the candidates themselves. For the first time in nearly three decades, the two have not met in a public forum to respond to questions and exchange platform planks. They’ve largely stuck to one-on-one interviews with friendly national news outlets, such as MS NOW and Fox News.
Ahead of Tuesday’s election, here are 10 questions we wish someone had asked the two candidates in a public forum.
Questions for Roy Cooper
1. As of February 2026, more than five years after Hurricane Florence struck Eastern North Carolina, more than 3,000 applicants to the state’s ReBuild NC program were still waiting for construction on their homes to begin. The program was fraught with delays and cost overruns. Do you consider ReBuild NC a failure, and to what degree should voters hold you accountable?
Read more from our past reporting:
As Helene Survivors Await State Help, Some Victims of Earlier Storms Are Still Out of Their Homes
A new housing recovery program created to avoid the delays and cost overruns that plagued past efforts is already seeing similar problems.
2. For years, the N.C. Democratic Party has been roiled by internal fights over Israel and Gaza. What steps do you believe the U.S. should take to resolve the situation? Do you believe the Israeli government has committed genocide in Gaza?
Read more from our past reporting:
The Internal Fight Roiling North Carolina Democrats
The party wanted to put a long-simmering dispute over allegations of racism and antisemitism behind them. Then a war broke out.
3. While you have presented yourself as a bipartisan leader, in 2022 you campaigned against a Democratic state senator who voted with Republicans to pass a budget. What policies of President Trump’s would you support in the Senate, even if it meant bucking your party?
Read more from our past reporting:
Roy Cooper’s Wager
When the governor endorsed a primary challenger to an incumbent Democrat, he waded into a complicated state Senate race—and may have risked his veto power in the process.
4. Had you been in the Senate the last two years, which of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees would you have supported and why? Under what scenarios would you reject a nominee?
Read more from our past reporting:
Thom Tillis Has a Donald Trump Predicament
The two-term GOP senator has already been censured for not being MAGA enough. Now he’s running for re-election as Trump pushes nominees and policies that could pose problems with swing voters.
5. Many Democrats have criticized recent Supreme Court decisions that enable partisan gerrymandering. At least one Supreme Court justice is likely to retire before the end of Trump’s term. If Democrats win a Senate majority, should they consider any Trump nominees to the court? What criteria would a Trump SCOTUS nominee have to meet to win your support?
Read more from our past reporting:
The Supreme Court’s Voting Rights Decision Doesn’t Mean Much for N.C.—Yet
North Carolina has already certified the primaries for the 2026 midterms. But legislators could face fewer restrictions in the next round of redistricting.
Questions for Michael Whatley
1. You previously lobbied for the oil and gas industry. Do you believe that climate change is real and caused by burning fossil fuels? If so, what should Congress do to address it? If not, what do you know that the overwhelming majority of climate experts don’t?
Read more from our past reporting:
Climate Change’s Compounding Pressures on Rural N.C.
Areas like Robeson County face some of the greatest climate risks, but have fewer resources to cope.
2. Trump appointed you “recovery czar” after Hurricane Helene struck Western North Carolina in 2024. But residents have been largely dissatisfied with the federal government’s response; in many counties, help has disproportionately gone to people with the highest incomes. What should you have done differently?
Read more from our past reporting:
Michael Whatley’s ‘Recovery Czar’ Title Hangs Over His Senate Bid
President Trump tapped him to oversee Hurricane Helene recovery efforts. Democrats are hell-bent on making that a liability.
Arduous and Unequal: The Fight to Get FEMA Housing Assistance After Helene
President Trump tapped the North Carolina Republican to oversee Hurricane Helene recovery efforts. Democrats are hell-bent on making that a liability for him.
3. Sen. Thom Tillis says he regrets his votes to confirm Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Do you believe Secretary Hegseth is doing a good job? Would you have voted to confirm him?
Read more from our past reporting:
Thom Tillis Regrets His Vote to Confirm Pete Hegseth
The retiring North Carolina Republican senator criticized Hegseth’s experience and called his execution at the Pentagon “sophomoric.”
4. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reached an agreement with the Departments of Justice and Education to resolve claims that it had ignored antisemitism and discriminated against white and Asian males. Do you believe that white men get a raw deal in college admissions? What steps should universities be allowed to take to encourage enrollment from underrepresented groups?
Read more from our past reporting:
UNC-CH Signs ‘Agreement’ With Federal Government Over Alleged Discrimination
UNC-Chapel Hill is the latest university to settle with the Trump administration, but will avoid the penalties imposed on many of its peers.
The Demise of DEI
A collaborative reporting project examining how diversity efforts have evolved at North Carolina’s public and private colleges.
5. After the 2024 election, the General Assembly transferred authority over the State Board of Elections from the governor to the state auditor, and state and county elections boards have since switched from Democratic to Republican control. Given that your party is now in charge, if you lose, will you commit to accepting the outcome?
Read more from our past reporting:
How North Carolina Got a Trump-Backed Voting Chief
Republicans have wanted to regain control of the state election apparatus for years. With state Auditor Dave Boliek, they’ve found their man.
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