North Carolina Democrats appear poised for a high-profile entry into the 2026 U.S. Senate race as former Governor Roy Cooper prepares to launch his campaign next week, according to Axios.

This news of Cooper jumping into the Senate race should not come as a surprise to most Tarheels, but here we are.

Back in 2018 when Cooper was about mid way through his first term as governor, he visited Edenton and toured Regulator Marine, even ate lunch at a downtown diner. I was there — maybe the blurry photo is mine that I gave to Regulator Marine — but the photos come from Regulator Marine, one of Chowan County’s biggest and best employers. If memory serves me correct, co-owner Owen Maxwell, now retired, was inducted in the Order of the Long Leaf Pine in 2023.

Back to Cooper, who governed North Carolina from 2017 to 2025 and left office term-limited in January — he is widely regarded as the party’s top recruit. Multiple sources told Axios that his entry would immediately position him as the frontrunner to flip the state’s open Senate seat. Over the weekend, Cooper is also expected to address Democrats at the party’s annual fundraising dinner — the Unity Dinner in Raleigh — setting the stage for an official campaign kickoff .

The Cook Political Report and other analysts rate North Carolina’s 2026 Senate race as a toss-up. Cooper’s entry would not only elevate the stakes but could also reshape the dynamics of a Senate map crucial for control of the chamber .

Larry Sabato’s famed “Crystall Ball” from the Center for Politics says too that the Senate race is a toss-up.

Not going to make comparisons to the Hunt v Helms race because that triggers some folks who still suffer from PTSD regarding conservative firebrand Jesse Helm’s tenure in politics, but if Cooper runs against a first-string Republican who’s not a moron, this will be a Senate race for the history books, perhaps one of the most expensive races in the nation, certainly NC.

The Republican field remains unsettled following Tillis’s decision. Lara Trump, former RNC vice chair and Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law, has emerged as a leading contender—though she has declined to confirm her intentions, calling them a “big, fat maybe”. Other GOP hopefuls, including Reps. Pat Harrigan, Dan Bishop, and Richard Hudson, are reportedly waiting in the wings, with many expected to wait for Trump’s decision .

All that said, it’s worth noting that while Democrats are salivating at the prospect of Cooper running, Tump won the Old North State in 2016, 2020 and 2024.

Worth noting, since the left leaning media outlets won’t include this in their fawning over Cooper’s candidacy, while Cooper was in the Governor’s mansion, he faced more veto overrides than any other governor in North Carolina history because of a Republican supermajority in the legislature.

And if there’s any indication that the political groundgame, at least in the First Congressional District, has changed in at least the last 10 years or so, many county Board of Elections have changed over from a Democrat majority to a Republican majority. See our story — New Boards of Elections Sworn In Across the Region; Republicans Take Chair Positions in Multiple Counties.

One more thing — with criminal charges to come for some big name national leaders and probably congressional hearings ahead regarding a series of events that may sway the electorate’s view of Washington, the nation is poised to experience an inflection point like we did in the early 1970s when Watergate changed the dynamics of the national election for Democrats the same way it did for Republicans who lost four seats in the Senate and 48 seats in the House at the 1974 mid-term elections.

All that said, Cooper’s got formidable name recognition, solid donors and a base that might be energized enough to send a liberal Democrat to Washington to check Trump’s ambitions. Cooper raised $41 million 2020 in his reelection bid against Lt. Governor Dan Forest. Democrats will need someone of Cooper’s caliber to raise big money and motivate people to vote down ticket.

Flashback — Republican Senator Thom Tillis stunned observers by announcing on June 29 — seems so long ago — that he would not seek a third term, transforming the race into one of the most competitive Senate contests nationwide . With Donald Trump having carried North Carolina in every election since 2016, the open seat presents Democrats a rare opportunity to shift the balance of power in the Senate .

“May you live in interesting times,” — old Chinese proverb

Political insiders say the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, led by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, has urged Cooper to run. After initial hesitation earlier in the year, Cooper “leaned toward” the race in late June, with aides saying he’d make a final decision in the weeks ahead .

On the Democratic side, former U.S. Rep. Wiley Nickel declared his candidacy in April . However, should Cooper enter the race, party strategists are expected to rally behind the two-term governor’s greater name recognition and fundraising heft.