North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has withdrawn from the vice presidential nomination to become Kamala Harris’ running mate amid rumors that he is planning to run for Senate in 2026.
Cooper confirmed in a statement Monday night that he would not run to be Harris’ vice president. He said he was “honored” to be considered, but that “this just wasn’t the right time for North Carolina and for me to be able to compete nationally.”
According to two sources, the 67-year-old governor had already withdrawn from the race before Harris’s vetting process began and never submitted the required materials.
Cooper, the former chairman of the Democratic Governors Association, has had close ties with Harris since they both served as state attorneys general.
His potential appointment was seen as a potential asset to help Harris grab North Carolina — the Democrats’ only significant chance to expand their 2020 map.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has withdrawn from the vice presidential nomination to become Kamala Harris’ running mate amid rumors he plans to run for Senate in 2026
According to a source close to Cooper, the governor is specifically targeting the North Carolina Senate seat that is up for re-election in 2026, NBC News reports.
Thom Tills, a Republican, won two consecutive terms, but both times by less than two points.
Under the state constitution, North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who was nominated by the GOP to replace the term-limited Cooper, becomes acting governor and can contract the Democrat’s powers when traveling outside the state.
According to two sources, Cooper has expressed concerns about what Robinson might do if he were to leave a large part of the state to campaign.
The governor’s legal team and some outside experts do not believe Robinson would actually assume the powers that come with being governor, such as issuing executive orders.
But the governor was concerned, a source said, that Robinson would take steps that could lead to litigation and distraction in North Carolina, one of the most critical political states in the country for both the presidential and gubernatorial races.
Robinson is an ardent social conservative who once called abortion “child sacrifice.” In various church pulpits, Robinson has identified men as the rightful leaders in church and society.
He once said that the leaders of the original birth control movement in the US were “all witches.”
The governor (pictured right), 67, withdrew from the race long before Harris’ vetting process began and never submitted the required materials, two of the people said.
Under the state constitution, North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson becomes acting governor and can assume his powers when traveling outside the state. Cooper has expressed concern about what Robinson might do if he were to leave the state extensively for campaign trips.
Robinson also spoke about LGBTQ people, using words like “filth” and “maggots.”
In the weeks before President Joe Biden withdrew from the race, Cooper appeared with Harris at campaign events in Greensboro and Fayetteville. He had dodged questions about the screening process.
“I trust her to make the right decision,” he recently told reporters in North Carolina.
The New York Times first reported that Cooper had withdrawn from the process, but did not provide details about the timing of his decision or his reasoning. Harris’ campaign declined to comment.
Harris’ search is still ongoing, and her teams of lawyers and political advisers are still sifting through information on the shrinking list of potential candidates.
The current vice president’s team was initially said to be looking at a dozen potential candidates, but the field has narrowed and now Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona are seen as front-runners, according to insiders.
A ABC News/Ipsos Poll A poll released Sunday found that Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly received the most votes of all candidates.
The same poll shows the vice president’s approval rating at 43 percent, up eight percentage points from last weekend, according to an ABC News/Ipsos poll that showed Donald Trump underwater.
Harris’ search is still ongoing and her teams of lawyers and political advisers are still reviewing information on a shrinking list of potential candidates
A source close to Cooper has said the governor is specifically targeting the North Carolina Senate seat that is up for election in 2026
Kelly, a former astronaut and husband of former congresswoman and gun control advocate Gabrielle Giffords, is viewed positively by 22 percent of respondents and negatively by only 12 percent.
While the majority still don’t know Kelly or have an opinion about the border state Democrat, he is still more popular than some of his potential rivals for vice president.
According to Kevin Madden, a Republican strategist and former spokesman for Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign, Kelly is seen as a potential concern for Republicans.
Republican strategist Matt Wolking believes Shapiro and Kelly are the most likely candidates in the vice presidential race. However, he noted that choosing Kelly would give Democrats a Senate seat in the crucial state of Arizona if they win the election.
Harris will likely face Trump in November, as there are currently no other Democrats in the race to challenge the vice president for the post. The Democratic National Convention is just three weeks away.
According to the poll, 52 percent of respondents think Harris should be the nominee, and 86 percent of Democrats want her to lead their ticket.
A separate poll also released on Sunday by YouGov/Times of London found that 30 percent of voters believe Biden should step down now and hand over the remainder of his term to Harris.
It also found that a staggering number of American voters – 92 percent – think Harris was at least partly involved in covering up the extent of President Biden’s mental decline.
Harris is likely to run against Trump in November, as no other Democrats are currently being floated to challenge the vice president for the post with just three weeks to go until the Democratic National Convention.
Trump has selected 39-year-old Senator JD Vance of Ohio (pictured left) as his running mate
The poll of 1,170 voters, conducted July 22-23, asked whether they believed there was an effort to protect Biden’s mental health from the public and who was responsible for the cover-up.
Fifty-four percent of respondents said there was a cover-up, and 30 percent said they don’t believe there was. Sixteen percent aren’t sure.
The change in the 2024 election has many wondering whether there was a conspiracy to keep Biden’s cognitive health a secret and who orchestrated the plot to keep his declining health a secret.