Former Gov. Roy Cooper has flipped an open North Carolina Senate seat for Democrats.
Mr. Cooper, 69, beat former Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley for the seat that the GOP has held since 2008.
He will fill the seat left vacant by retiring Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, who has clashed with the second Trump administration.
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National Republicans had stopped boosting Mr. Whatley in recent months to focus on more competitive races.
Senate Democratic Leader Charles E. Schumer and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, both of New York, congratulated Mr. Cooper, one of their top recruits, on his victory.
“Roy has never lost an election because North Carolinians know he is a true leader and champion for his state,” they said.
Mr. Cooper served two terms as governor, after time as attorney general and in the state legislature.
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