Sen. Tillis won’t seek re-election after opposing health care aspects of Trump megabill

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — North Carolina’s senior U.S. Senator said Sunday he will not seek re-election. Thom Tillis made the announcement just days after he came out against the latest version of President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” legislation that looks to accomplish much of the president’s agenda.

Tillis made clear he had supported previous versions of the bill but said the latest advanced by the Senate would take healthcare coverage away from more than 600,000 North Carolinians who qualify for Medicaid.

“Republicans are about to make a mistake on health care and betraying a promise,” Tillis said from the Senate floor.

Late Saturday night, via his Truth Social Platform, Trump said he planned to meet with candidates interested in running against Tillis in 2026. The next morning, Trump attacked the senator directly, calling him “a talker and a complainer, not a doer.”

Within hours, Tillis announced he planned not to seek re-election. In a lengthy written statement, Tillis argued that few in Washington care about getting actual work done, that those who embrace bipartisanship and compromise are “an endangered species.” Tillis told reporters Monday his decision had nothing to do with Trump’s attacks.

“No, I had already told the President that he needs to start looking for replacements before that came out,” said Tillis.

Trump did promise to protect Medicaid during a cabinet meeting this year, and the White House insists that promise will not be broken.

“This bill strengthens Medicaid, it will protect those benefits that hard-working Americans need, and that’s why the President wants the bill to pass. The senator was wrong,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.

As for the Senate seat, staff for former Governor Roy Cooper have confirmed he is seriously considering a run. As for a Republican nominee, all eyes are on President Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, a Wilmington native.

“It’s probably Lara Trump’s decision. First of all, here, I don’t know that anybody wants to get in the way of her father-in-law,” said Mac McCorkle, a professor at Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy.

Trump chaired the RNC during the last election cycle. She currently lives in Florida and hosts a show on Fox News. To run as a Republican, she would have to move to North Carolina by September.