GOP Groups Promise To Make Dems’ Top Recruit Regret Jumping Into Blockbuster Senate Race

National Republican groups launched a $200,000 advertisement campaign on Monday, branding former two-term Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper as “Radical Roy,” as he officially declared his candidacy for the state’s key 2026 Senate race.

The Senate Leadership Fund, a super PAC aligned with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, launched a website describing Cooper’s gubernatorial record as “woke” and “weak” and calling him a “radical liberal in disguise.” The $200,000 purchase covers “a texting campaign, plus Google and X ads,” according to Punchbowl News.

A press release by the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) called Cooper “a wreck.”

The NRSC’s video told viewers that Cooper isn’t one of “the people you trust in the driver’s seat,” because he “crashed schools, revved up your taxes, and took a hard left on crime – letting violent criminals cruise free. Then he floored it on radical gender ideology – letting men race in women’s lanes.”

The video also pointed out the former governor’s handling of Hurricane Helene in 2024, stating, “When disaster hit North Carolina, Roy hit cruise control and showed up three days later – leaving residents nowhere to go.”