Top Senate GOP group puts pause on spending in North Carolina

Republicans are shifting money away from North Carolina's Senate contest, a sign of how they are triaging to protect their majority in the midterms. The Senate Leadership Fund, the party's leading super PAC for Senate races, has halted its advertising in the state, a source familiar with its plans said. Semafor reported the move first. The group will instead launch an ad campaign in Kansas worth at least seven figures to help Sen. Roger Marshall, who faces a competitive race against Democratic pastor Adam Hamilton in a state President Donald Trump carried by 16 points in 2024. Vice President JD Vance recently rallied there with Marshall, according to CNN.

North Carolina once ranked among the seats Republicans most expected to defend, and the fund has poured over $30 million into it this cycle. Even so, Republican nominee Michael Whatley has trailed former Gov. Roy Cooper, the Democratic nominee, in nearly every recent poll.

Other backers have also pulled back. Old North Action reduced its reservations by about a third last month, and Americans for Prosperity Action unveiled a $22 million Election Day push for five GOP Senate hopefuls that leaves Whatley out.

Summarized by PolitiKool from CNN’s reporting. Read the full story at CNN →