Wiley Nickel exits North Carolina Senate race the day after Roy Cooper announces candidacy
Source: Associated Press
Wiley Nickel exits North Carolina Senate race the day after Roy Cooper announces candidacy
By GARY D. ROBERTSON
Updated 8:33 AM EDT, July 29, 2025
CARY, N.C. (AP) — A former congressman will no longer seek an open U.S. Senate seat in North Carolina next year now that fellow Democrat Roy Cooper is running for the post.
Tuesday’s announcement by ex-U.S. Rep. Wiley Nickel came the day after Cooper, a former two-term governor, kicked off his own campaign to succeed retiring Republican Sen. Thom Tillis with a video message. Cooper’s past popularity, name recognition and fundraising ability made him the party’s front-runner overnight.
“I’ve seen firsthand his steady, bipartisan leadership. He listens, he shows up, and he gets things done,” Nickel said while endorsing Cooper and revealing plans to suspend his own Senate campaign. “And for so many of us, including me, he’s been an inspiration to step up and serve.”
Nickel had signaled interest in a 2026 U.S. Senate bid nearly two years ago, when the Raleigh-area congressman decided against seeking a second U.S. House term because he said district lines redrawn by the General Assembly made it essentially impossible to win again.
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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/north-carolina-senate-election-tillis-nickel-d9da6af3c46da5a96df6c7ba5ada3ae9