Latest news with #SwingState
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
NC Sen. Thom Tillis' isn't running for 3rd term. What Trump, others are saying
North Carolina Republican U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis made an unexpected decision not to seek a third term Sunday morning. And it drew a sharp reaction from President Donald Trump: 'Great News! 'Senator' Thom Tillis will not be seeking reelection.' The day before, the Republican president had threatened to find a primary-election challenger to Tillis — a former speaker of the state House — over his opposition to Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill.' The Huntersville resident argued the bill would hurt hospitals and rural North Carolinians with its Medicaid cuts. On his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump posted Saturday night saying he was already planning to meet with possible candidates in the weeks ahead to challenge Tillis for the 2026 midterms. 'Thom Tillis is making a BIG MISTAKE for America, and the Wonderful People of North Carolina!' Trump wrote in another Truth Social post Saturday night. The next morning, Tillis announced it was 'not a hard choice' to take a step back and focus on family. Attention was already on the upcoming race for Tillis' Senate seat, which is sure to be an indicator of Trump's favorability among North Carolina voters. Democrats are preparing to prioritize the campaign for the Republican-held seat in what is certain to be a costly midterm. North Carolina is a swing state, but has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 2008. A Democratic political action committee, Senate Majority PAC, jumped on Tillis' announcement as an opportunity for change. The PAC's main objective is to win Senate races for Democratic candidates. 'Democrats were poised to win in North Carolina whether Thom Tillis' name was on the ballot in November 2026 or not. But his early retirement proves there is no space within the Republican party to dissent over taking health care away from 11.8 million people by destroying Medicaid and raising costs,' a spokesperson for the PAC, Lauren French, said in a press release. However, the National Republican Senatorial Committee's chairman, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, said in a press release that after more than a decade of GOP representation in the Senate, North Carolina Republicans' hold on Tillis' seat would not be going away. Trump also won the state in the past three presidential elections. 'That streak will continue in 2026 when North Carolinians elect a conservative leader committed to advancing an agenda of opportunity, prosperity, and security,' the press release said. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, weighed in on X, saying that despite their political differences, he supported Tillis in voting against the 'big beautiful bill.' 'The Republican Party today is a cult. Either you do as Trump wants, or you're out,' Sanders said. 'Pathetic.' Closer to home, Democratic Reps. Alma Adams of Charlotte and Deborah Ross of Raleigh both had positive things to say about Tillis, too. Ross commended Tillis' time in the U.S. Senate and praised his decision to deny Trump's megabill as 'putting his commitment to the people of North Carolina above his loyalty to the leaders of the Republican Party.' 'It is imperative that our next senator is someone who will hold President Trump and his administration accountable,' her statement said. Adams said she wanted to commend Tillis 'for his courage and commitment in doing the right thing for our country.' His vote 'was a teachable moment to our youth about the importance of putting country before yourself,' she said. North Carolina's former lieutenant governor, Republican Mark Robinson, was aligned with the MAGA wing of the GOP and often feuded with Tillis before losing the race for governor last year. Robinson responded to a post on X that said Tillis' decision to step down 'is the final nail in the coffin of the North Carolina Republican Party of years passed [sic].' 'I couldn't have said it better,' Robinson said. North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson added on X that 'the time was right' for Tillis to step down. Trump's bill would be devastating to North Carolina, he added.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro among leading candidates in 2028 presidential poll
(WHTM) – Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro is among the top Democratic Party candidates for president in 2028, according to a new Emerson College Polling survey. The poll of over 400 Democratic Primary voters nationwide showed Shapiro with 7% support, tied for fourth among a crowded field of potential candidates. Josh Shapiro responds to 'noise' regarding potential 2028 presidential bid Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg led the poll with 16%, followed by former Vice President and 2024 presidential nominee Kamala Harris at 13%. California Governor Gavin Newsom came in third at 12%, and Shapiro tied with New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at 7%. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer each received between 3-5% support. Five candidates received 2% or less, and another 2% said they were undecided. Twenty-three percent of Democratic Party voters said they were undecided, with candidates unlikely to declare for at least two more years. Shapiro, a one-term governor in a critical swing state, has long been suggested to be a candidate for president. He was also a finalist to be Kamala Harris's running mate in 2024. House Democrats targeting 35 Republicans in 2026 Shapiro faces re-election in 2026 with Republican Congressman Dan Meuser, Treasurer Stacy Garrity, and State Senator Doug Mastriano all saying they are considering a run. A plurality of Republican primary voters surveyed in the Emerson College poll (46%) support Vice President JD Vance to succeed President Donald Trump in 2028. Secretary of State Marco Rubio received 12% support, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis received 9%, and 5% said they'd support Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ECP_National_6 Methodology The Emerson College Polling national survey was conducted June 24-25, 2025. The sample of U.S. active registered voters, n=1,000, has a credibility interval, similar to a poll's margin of error (MOE), of +/- 3 percentage points. The data sets were weighted by gender, education, race, age, party registration, and region based on U.S. Census parameters and voter file data. It is important to remember that subsets based on demographics, such as gender, age, education, and race/ethnicity, carry with them higher credibility intervals, as the sample size is reduced. Survey results should be understood within the poll's range of scores, and with a confidence interval of 95% a poll will fall outside the range of scores 1 in 20 times. Data was collected by contacting a voter list of cellphones via MMS-to-web text (list provided by Aristotle) and an online panel of voters provided by CINT. Panel responses were matched to the Aristotle voter file using respondents' full name and ZIP code. The survey was offered in English. All questions asked in this survey with the exact wording, along with full results, demographics, and cross tabulations can be found under Full Results. This survey was funded by Emerson College. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Associated Press
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Democrats are trying to figure out what to do about John Fetterman. One of them is stepping up
ENOLA, Pa. (AP) — Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania isn't even up for reelection until 2028, but already a one-time primary foe, former U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb, is crisscrossing Pennsylvania and social media, looking and sounding like he's preparing to challenge Fetterman again. At town hall after town hall across Pennsylvania, Democrats and allied progressive groups aren't hearing from Fetterman in person — or Republicans who control Washington, for that matter. But they are hearing from Lamb, a living reminder of the Democrat they could have elected instead of Fetterman. The former congressman has emerged as an in-demand town hall headliner, sometimes as a stand-in for Fetterman — who just might bash Fetterman. 'I thought I was going to play Senator Fetterman,' Lamb joked as he sat down in front of a central Pennsylvania crowd last Sunday. Democrats are frustrated with Fetterman Lamb's reemergence comes at an in-between moment, roughly halfway through Fetterman's six-year term, and is helping define the struggle facing Democrats in swing-state Pennsylvania. There, Democrats figure prominently in their national effort to push back on President Donald Trump, but also in their struggle to figure out what to do about Fetterman, who is under fire from rank-and-file Democrats for being willing to cooperate with Trump. Frustration with Fetterman has been on display on social media, at the massive ' No Kings ' rally in Philadelphia and among the Democratic Party's faithful. The steering committee of the progressive organization Indivisible PA last month asked Fetterman to resign. It's quite a turnabout for the hoodies-and-shorts-wearing Fetterman, elected in 2022 with an everyman persona and irreverent wit, who was unafraid to challenge convention. For some progressives, frustration with Fetterman began with his staunch support for Israel's punishing war against Hamas in Gaza, an issue that divides Democrats. It's moved beyond that since Trump took office. Now, some are wondering why he's — as they see it — kissing up to Trump, why he's chastising fellow Democrats for their anti-Trump resistance and whether he's even committed to their causes at all. Most recently, they question his support for Trump's bombing of Iran. 'It hurts,' said John Abbott, who attended Sunday's event in suburban Harrisburg. Speaking at the flagship 'No Kings' rally in Philadelphia, Indivisible co-founder Leah Greenberg name-checked Fetterman. 'We're looking to the leaders who will fight for us, because even today there are folks among the Democratic Party who think we should roll over and play dead,' Greenberg said. 'Anyone seen John Fetterman here today?' The crowd booed. Why is Conor Lamb crisscrossing Pennsylvania again? In Pittsburgh, progressives trying to land an in-person town hall with Fetterman or first-term Republican Sen. David McCormick noticed when the two senators advertised an event together at a downtown restaurant to celebrate the release of McCormick's new book. Progressive groups organized to protest it and — after it got moved to a private location with a private invite list — went ahead with their own town hall. They invited Lamb and a local Democratic state representative instead. More invitations for Lamb started rolling in. By his count, he's now attended at least a dozen town halls and party events, easily clocking more than 2,000 miles to appear in small towns, small cities and suburbs, often in conservative areas. 'Showing up matters and it really does make a difference,' said Dana Kellerman, a Pittsburgh-based progressive organizer. 'Is that going to matter to John Fetterman? I really don't know. I don't know what he's thinking. I don't know if he's always been this person or if he's changed in the last two years.' Fetterman has brushed off criticism, saying he's a committed Democrat, insisting he was elected to engage with Republicans and — perhaps hypocritically — questioning why Democrats would criticize fellow Democrats. At times, Fetterman has criticized Trump, questioning the move to 'punch our allies in the mouth' with tariffs or the need for cuts to social-safety net programs in the GOP's legislation to extend 2017's tax cuts. Fetterman's office didn't respond to an inquiry about Lamb. Is Conor Lamb running for Senate? For his part, Lamb — a former U.S. Marine and federal prosecutor — says he isn't running for anything right now, but he'll do whatever he can to 'stop this slide that we're on toward a less democratic country and try to create one in which there's more opportunity for people.' To some Democrats, he sounds like a candidate. 'That he's doing these town halls is a good indication that he'll be running for something, so it's a good thing,' said Janet Bargh, who attended the event in suburban Harrisburg. Aside from the town halls, he spoke at the Unite for Veterans event on the National Mall. He has also been active on social media, doing local radio appearances and appearing on MSNBC, where he recently criticized the June 14 military parade ordered up by Trump. Not long ago, it was hard to envision Lamb losing a race, ever. In 2018, he won a heavily Trump-friendly congressional district in southwestern Pennsylvania in a special election. It was the center of the political universe that spring, drawing campaign visits by Trump and then-presidential hopeful Joe Biden. Suddenly, Lamb was ascendant. Then he ran for Senate and lost handily — by more than two-to-one — to Fetterman in 2022's primary. People often ask Lamb if he's going to challenge Fetterman again. Lamb said he reminds them that Fetterman has three years left in his term and pivots the conversation to what Democrats need to do to win elections in 2025 and 2026. Still, Lamb is unafraid to criticize Fetterman publicly. And, he said, he's a magnet for Democrats to air their unhappiness with Fetterman. What he hears, over and over, is frustration that Fetterman spends too much time attacking fellow Democrats and not enough time challenging Trump. 'And that is, I think, what's driving the frustration more than any one particular issue,' Lamb said. At the town hall, Lamb wasn't afraid to admit he'd lost to Fetterman. But he turned it into an attack line. 'When I watch the person who beat me give up on every important issue that he campaigned on ... the more I reasoned that the point of all of this in the first place is advocacy for what's right and wrong,' Lamb told the crowd. 'And advocacy for not just a particular party to win, but for the type of country where it matters if, when you stand up, you tell the truth.' The crowd cheered. ___ Follow Marc Levy on X at:
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ep. 010: Pat Harrigan
(WGHP) — Politicians from coast to coast like to claim they're 'fighting for you,' but few know fighting quite like Pat Harrigan does. Harrigan is the freshman congressman representing North Carolina's 10th district, and, as a Green Beret, he saw combat overseas and knows not only what that's like but the cost of it all. It was what he considers the U.S.'s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan that inspired him to run for Congress, and Harrigan has strong opinions not just about what's happening in Ukraine but the long fight we're engaged in with China and, more importantly, how that fight can be won. On the lighter side, Harrigan reveals how he and his wife, Rocky, named their two daughters. Hosted by , is a weekly look at what's going on in the world of politics and how it all affects you. Watch the full episode in the video player above. You can also watch Swing State on or stream it on the on Roku, AppleTV and Fire TV. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ep. 007: Wiley Nickel
(WGHP) — He's not the one everyone seems to be waiting for, but he says he's the man they should be. Wiley Nickel is not a firebrand. He's not a famous name, but he did serve in both the North Carolina State Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives, and he believes he's the best one to take on two-term incumbent U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis. He lays out his case for the Democratic nomination and why voters should listen less to the voices of the progressive left that seem to be dominating the Democratic Party these days. Hosted by , is a weekly look at what's going on in the world of politics and how it all affects you. Watch the full episode in the video player above. You can also watch Swing State on or stream it on the on Roku, AppleTV and Fire TV. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
