North Carolina's Widening Gap

Episode summary:

A new John Locke Foundation and Carolina Journal poll has some uncomfortable numbers for North Carolina Republicans. Michael Whatley trails former Governor Roy Cooper by 13 points in the U.S. Senate race, and roughly 15% of 2024 Trump voters say they're ready to cross over. We ask the obvious question: why would a Republican vote for a Democrat whose record runs opposite nearly everything conservatives say they care about? And we make the case for why this race matters far beyond any one candidate or personality. 

What You'll Learn / Key Moments

• 00:00 – Hook: "Republicans, what the heck is wrong with you?"
• 00:09 – A new John Locke Foundation and Carolina Journal poll shows Whatley trailing Cooper 52% to 39%
• 00:27 – The crossover numbers: 15% of 2024 Trump voters say they're ready to vote for Cooper or someone else
• 01:43 – The same poll shows overwhelming support for core conservative priorities like voter ID and border enforcement
• 02:02 – The call for a Republican "gut check" as Cooper aligns with the national Democratic Party

What You Can Do

This race gets decided by exactly the voters this poll is describing — Republicans frustrated enough to consider sitting out or crossing over. If that's you, or someone you know, share this episode and have the honest conversation about what a Cooper-held Senate seat would mean for the border, taxes, and the issues you say you care about most. Talk to your neighbors. Get involved with your local party. And when it's time to vote, vote on the record, not on the noise.

Republicans – what the heck is wrong with you?

This is the Wilmington Standard Daily Update for Friday August 14, 2026.

The John Locke Foundation and the Carolina Journal released its long awaited poll yesterday.  In the Senate race, the results are incredibly discouraging for Michael Whatley who trails former Governor Roy Cooper 52% to 39%.  Governor Cooper’s numbers have grown consistently in every poll.

Here is the worst part.  According to the poll:

Whatley has the support of 85% of voters who backed Donald Trump in 2024, while Cooper has the support of 95% of Kamala Harris 2024 voters.

In other words, 15% of those who turned out for Trump in 2024 have decided to vote for either a Democrat or someone else who will do everything in his power to destroy everything the President has worked hard to accomplish over the last two years. 

Again – what are you thinking?

Do you honestly believe that a Democrat – especially one as left leaning as Roy Cooper – is going to work to enforce the border, keep taxes low, or protect against the terrorism of Iran and other Islamic countries?  Do you truly believe any Democrat has any intention to protect the unborn, protect women in sports, and to protect our children from predators?  Roy Cooper’s track record on any of these issues is horrible – and yet you as a Republican are going to vote for him?

You say you don’t like Trump.  You say you are sick of the war with Iran.  You say you disagree with tariffs being used as foreign policy.  You might even pull out the old chestnut of Orange Man Bad Mean Tweets.

At the same time, however, this poll shows overwhelming support for voter ID laws, transparency in government, affordable electricity, and banning homeless encampments.  All of these are Republican and Conservative ideas, yet up to 9% of Republicans in our state would vote for the Democrat candidate. 

Republicans and Conservatives, it is time for a gut check in North Carolina.  A Democrat-controlled Senate would be disastrous for our country and our state.  No amount of disagreement with the decisions that President Trump has made in office can change this simple truth.  Roy Cooper is the party of Zohran Mamdani, Abdul El-Sayad, Chuck Schumer, Elizabeth Warren, Illhan Omar and Joe Biden.

Do you honestly think they can do better?

For the Wilmington Standard, I’m Reuel Sample.  Thanks for listening.