North Carolina Senate Race: Will Voter Turnout Break Records

Early voting opens Oct. 15 and runs through Oct. 31 in North Carolina, a key battleground in the 2025 midterms. The marquee race is the open U.S. Senate seat left by retiring Republican Thom Tillis, pitting Democrat and former Gov. Roy Cooper against Republican Michael Whatley, the Trump-backed former RNC chair, with Green and Libertarian candidates also on the ballot. Democrats are targeting the seat as part of a broader push to flip the four seats needed for Senate control.

The ballot also includes competitive U.S. House races, including Charlotte-area districts held by Reps. Alma Adams, Tim Moore and Mark Harris, plus down-ballot contests for the N.C. Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, state legislature, and Mecklenburg County offices. Voters will also weigh in on constitutional amendments covering voter ID, income tax caps and property tax limits, along with Charlotte bond measures for transportation, housing and neighborhood improvements. Election Day is Nov. 3, with North Carolina's results seen as a bellwether for national party control in Washington.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom capped a multi-state "take it back tour" with eight public events across South Carolina, plus stops in Alabama and North Carolina, intensifying speculation about a 2028 Democratic presidential run. In North Carolina, Newsom campaigned for U.S. Senate candidate Roy Cooper in Charlotte and rallied Labor Day weekend crowds in Monroe, urging Democrats to focus on the 2026 midterms rather than 2028. He accused Trump of ruthlessness, corruption and attempting to "nationalize" elections through mail-in voting restrictions, telling supporters it's time to "fight fire with fire." Newsom told the Associated Press a 2028 decision could come before year's end.

Voters and strategists increasingly frame California itself as Newsom's central liability, with critics warning his state's liberal image could hurt him against rivals like Josh Shapiro and Pete Buttigieg. Republicans, including North Carolina Senate candidate Michael Whatley and local officials, mocked the visits with "Wrong Coast" signs and accused him of trying to "California" their states. Newsom's team counters that his progressive record on health care, wages and climate could be an asset in a Democratic primary. South Carolina, hosting Democrats' first 2028 primary, remains a key early proving ground alongside hopefuls like Cory Booker.

Early voting continues to outpace prior midterm cycles ahead of the Nov. 3 election. Nationally, more than 12.6 million Americans have voted early, with a CNN analysis of 25 states finding Democrats leading turnout among both high- and low-propensity voters, especially in Kansas and North Carolina. Iowa absentee ballots are up nearly 30% from four years ago, and Florida has topped 3.5 million ballots cast with Republicans narrowly ahead. Oklahoma saw a 41% jump in first-day turnout over 2022, driven largely by Democrats and independents, though Republicans still led overall. In Buncombe County, N.C., turnout has already surpassed all of 2022. Analysts caution early returns don't reliably predict final results.

Alongside candidate races, North Carolina voters are deciding three constitutional amendments. One would extend the state's existing in-person photo voter ID requirement to absentee-by-mail ballots, building on a 2018 amendment that survived years of litigation before the state Supreme Court upheld it in 2023. A second would cap the state income tax rate at 3.5%, below the current 3.99% flat rate. A third would limit how much local governments can raise property taxes annually. Polling shows strong public support for all three measures, though critics warn the tax caps could constrain future lawmakers and local governments during downturns. None of the changes take effect immediately after Election Day.

North Carolina's State Board of Elections approved stricter mail-in voting rules just before counties began sending ballots to military and overseas voters. The new Republican-backed rules, kept undisclosed ahead of the vote, direct officials not to count mail-in ballots that arrive with an unsealed inner envelope or a mismatched signature. Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat, called the move "a slap in the face to voters" and a circumvention of the law, while the state's Republican elections director defended the change as focused on secure, accurate administration.

The rule change comes amid separate federal disputes over mail voting: a Trump administration directive ordering the U.S. Postal Service to screen for non-citizen voting has been largely blocked by courts, though the Supreme Court could weigh in soon. A whistleblower has warned the screening process could wrongly flag legitimate voters.

Key dates for North Carolina voters include an Oct. 9 registration mail deadline, early voting from Oct. 15-31, and Election Day on Nov. 3, with races including U.S. Senate, Congress, and state legislative seats on the ballot.

North Carolina's Republican-majority State Board of Elections approved new mail-in voting restrictions on Sept. 4, hours before counties began mailing absentee ballots for the 2026 midterms. The 3-2 party-line vote requires officials to disqualify ballots returned in unsealed envelopes, reversing a prior policy that treated such errors as non-material, and limits who may submit a ballot on a voter's behalf to close relatives or legal guardians. Gov. Josh Stein criticized the move as a last-minute "circumvention" of the law that could disenfranchise voters. Other states, including Wisconsin, have since begun mailing their own 2026 absentee ballots, with local clerks directing voters to online portals to request, track, and confirm receipt of ballots ahead of the Nov. 3 election.

The rollout continues amid a broader legal fight over President Trump's executive order targeting mail-in voting nationwide, which requires federal approval of ballot envelope designs and voter list submissions. A federal judge has extended an order blocking USPS enforcement of the directive through the November elections, and the Trump administration has again appealed to the Supreme Court to lift the injunction. North Carolina, the first state to send out 2026 absentee ballots, voluntarily submitted its envelope design for federal review while still challenging the order's constitutionality. The absentee request deadline in North Carolina is Oct. 20.

Former Governor Roy Cooper holds a double-digit lead over Republican Michael Whatley in North Carolina's US Senate race, built on a message focused on affordability and healthcare costs. Cooper, who spent six years securing Medicaid expansion from a GOP-controlled legislature, is campaigning against Trump-backed healthcare cuts and the rollback of Obamacare subsidies, which he blames for rising premiums. Republican super PACs have pulled TV ad spending from the state to shore up other races, and Trump plans to rally for Whatley, a political newcomer and former RNC chair. With Republicans holding a narrow Senate majority, Democrats need the North Carolina seat as part of a broader path to control the chamber, and strategists see Cooper's approach as a potential model for other moderate Democrats.

Former North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper holds a double-digit lead over Republican Michael Whatley in the race to fill the state's open US Senate seat, with an October SurveyUSA poll showing him ahead by 14 points. Cooper, who never lost an election in four decades of public service, has centered his campaign on affordability, pointing to his years-long push to expand Medicaid and attacking GOP-driven healthcare premium increases tied to Trump's tax and budget legislation. Senate Republicans' top super PAC has pulled TV ads from the state to shore up other races, while Trump plans to rally for Whatley. Democrats need to flip four Senate seats to win control, making North Carolina pivotal, and some see Cooper's approach as a model other moderate Democrats could replicate.