Washington — Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina announced Sunday that he won’t seek reelection in 2026, hours after President Trump threatened to back a primary challenge against him when he refused to support his massive spending and tax bill which he dubbed the “big, beautiful bill.”
“It’s not a hard choice, and I will not be seeking re-election,” Tillis said in a statement Sunday. He noted that he hasn’t “been excited about running for another term,” citing the choice between “spending another six years navigating the political theatre and partisan gridlock in Washington” or spending time with his family.
The North Carolina Republican was first elected to the Senate in 2014, and speculation has swirled for weeks around whether he would seek another term. The announcement came hours after Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social criticizing Tillis for his opposition to some of the provisions within the massive tax legislation making its way through the Senate, while the president said he would be meeting with possible primary opponents to run against Tillis, “looking for someone who will properly represent the Great People of North Carolina.”
Tillis had said earlier Sunday that he could not support the legislation, which is the centerpiece of the president’s second-term agenda, due to Medicaid cuts “that would be devastating to North Carolina.”
The senator outlined his thoughts about Washington in recent years in his statement Sunday: “It’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species.”
In an apparent nod to former Democrat-turned-independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Tillis said “Democrats recently lost two such leaders who were dedicated to making the Senate more of a functional and productive legislative body.” He added that “their presence in the Senate chamber has been sorely missed every day since” they opted not to seek reelection.
“It underscores the greatest form of hypocrisy in American politics,” Tillis continued. “When people see independent thinking on the other side, they cheer. But when those very same people see independent thinking coming from their side, they scorn, ostracize, and even censure them.”
The announcement will open up a key seat in North Carolina, which has historically voted for Republicans in every presidential race, with the exception of Barack Obama in 2008.
National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Tim Scott said in a statement that Mr. Trump “has won North Carolina three times, and the state’s been represented by two Republican Senators for over a decade.”
“That streak will continue in 2026 when North Carolinians elect a conservative leader committed to advancing an agenda of opportunity, prosperity, and security,” Scott said.
Kaia Hubbard is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital, based in Washington, D.C.
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