North Carolina Senate race features no public debate
Incumbent Roy Cooper and challenger Michael Whatley have avoided facing each other on a stage, marking a rare exception in the state’s recent electoral history.
By Bianca Herrera ·
More than 3,000 applicants to the state’s ReBuild NC housing program were still waiting for construction to begin on their homes as of February 2026. This backlog, which followed Hurricane Florence, represents one of the specific issues that remained unaddressed in a public forum during the current U.S. Senate race in North Carolina.
For the first time in nearly three decades, the two candidates in this contest have not met in a public forum. Incumbent Democrat Roy Cooper, a two-term former governor, faces Republican Michael Whatley, who has never previously held public office. The pair have largely limited their media appearances to one-on-one interviews with national outlets such as MS NOW and Fox News.
The absence of a debate leaves voters without a direct comparison of the candidates’ positions on several contentious topics. The Assembly, a local news outlet, compiled a list of ten questions it believes were left unanswered by both men. These questions span housing recovery, foreign policy, and party discipline.
Reporters asked Cooper if he considered the ReBuild NC program a failure given the delays and cost overruns. They also sought his stance on the conflict in Gaza and whether he views the Israeli government as committing genocide. Additionally, the questions probed his record of bipartisan voting, specifically referencing his 2022 primary campaign against a Democratic state senator who voted with Republicans on a budget.
The questions directed at Whatley focused on his background in private industry and his role in federal disaster relief. He was asked about his lobbying work for the oil and gas sector and his views on climate change. Reporters also inquired about his tenure as the Trump administration’s recovery czar after Hurricane Helene struck Western North Carolina in 2024, noting that residents in many counties expressed dissatisfaction with the distribution of federal aid.
Specific policy disagreements were also highlighted in the list of unasked questions. Cooper was asked which of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees he would have supported and what criteria he would use to evaluate Supreme Court nominees. Whatley was asked about his vote on confirming Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and his reaction to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s settlement with the federal government regarding admissions and antisemitism claims.
The election is scheduled for Tuesday. In the 2024 election cycle, the state’s General Assembly transferred authority over the State Board of Elections from the governor to the state auditor. State and county elections boards have since shifted from Democratic to Republican control. This change in administrative oversight is a point of contention, with reporters asking Whatley if he would accept the outcome if he loses despite his party’s new control over election administration.
