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Republican

Incumbent

Thom Tillis

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Republican

Incumbent

Thom Tillis

Website

North Carolina Republican Senate nominee?

$222.9K

MAR 4, 2026

Primary Election

Party selects its nominee.

Overview

Current roleU.S. Senator

PartyRepublican

Political ideologyConservative Republican

Age65 years old (Aug 30, 1960)

GenderMale

LocationNorth Carolina

BackgroundPolitician

EducationChattanooga State Community College

Notable personal detailsThomas Roland Tillis is a Republican politician serving as a United States senator from North Carolina since 2015. He previously served in the North Carolina House of Representatives and was Speaker of the North Carolina House. Before elected office, he worked in technology and management consulting, including roles at IBM and PricewaterhouseCoopers. He lives in Huntersville, North Carolina, with his wife Susan, and they have two children.

SourcesShow

tillis.senate.gov en.wikipedia.org wikidata.org britannica.com pt.wikipedia.org it.wikipedia.org es.wikipedia.org lda.senate.gov ncdp.org differentiatordata.com senate.gov congress.gov cnbc.com apnews.com static.votesmart.org govinfo.gov judiciary.senate.gov fec.gov

Positions

LiberalConservative

Economy & Taxes

Supports major tax cuts for individuals and businesses, including voting for the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and favors reducing regulation and cutting government red tape to stimulate economic growth. Advocates lowering the corporate tax rate and simplifying the tax code as means to increase competitiveness and provide tax relief to families and businesses.

Healthcare

Supports preserving private insurance and market-based approaches, opposes a government-run single-payer/“Medicare for All” system, and has backed bipartisan measures to expand telehealth, fund community health centers, and control prescription drug costs. Has opposed federal expansion of Medicaid in North Carolina and emphasized reducing regulatory barriers and keeping health-care decisions out of expanded federal control.

Immigration & Border

Supports expanded border enforcement and construction of border barriers, tighter asylum standards and restrictions, criminal penalties for visa overstays, and stronger interior and detention authority to remove or detain undocumented immigrants. Advocates ending “catch and release,” increasing Border Patrol staffing, and other enforcement-first measures while opposing current administration policies he says weaken border security.

Abortion & Reproductive Rights

The candidate supports significant restrictions on abortion, including backing federal limits such as a 20-week (pain-capable) prohibition with specified exceptions and permanently banning taxpayer funding of elective abortions. He has cosponsored and voted for pro-life legislation (e.g., Born‑Alive protections, Pain‑Capable Unborn Child Protection Act) and opposed bills that would expand abortion rights.

Climate & Energy

Thom Tillis supports an "all-of-the-above" energy approach emphasizing American energy independence, expanded domestic oil and gas production, and market-driven solutions for climate challenges while opposing the Green New Deal. He has promoted increased LNG export capacity and criticized federal actions he says constrain fossil fuel development, while also noting support for renewable energy and prior state-level renewable portfolio standards.

Public Safety & Guns

Thom Tillis consistently frames his approach as protecting Second Amendment rights while supporting targeted measures to keep guns out of the wrong hands, including improvements to the NICS background-check system and bipartisan 2022 gun-safety legislation. He has opposed expanded ATF regulatory actions and supported concealed-carry reciprocity and litigation challenging ATF rules. His record combines support for gun-owner protections with backing for certain background-check and record-reporting reforms.

News

AINews Summary

Last updatedMar 13, 2026

Thom Tillis is in the news mainly because he is retiring and not seeking reelection, leaving an open U.S. Senate seat in North Carolina. The race to succeed him is now set, with Michael Whatley winning the Republican nomination and Roy Cooper winning the Democratic nomination. Tillis has also drawn attention for publicly criticizing Donald Trump and his team, including raising concerns about Trump using Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff in major international talks without Senate confirmation or oversight, and saying he won’t back Kevin Warsh for Fed chair until the probe of Jerome Powell is finished.

tillis.senate.gov+17

Articles

NNewsmax4 months ago