News just broke this morning that Thom Tillis will not be seeking re-election: THOM TILLIS IS OUT — Senator Announces He Will NOT Run For Re-election After Trump Threat To Primary Him That leaves his Senate seat up for grabs in 2026 and new reports say a Trump family member may be the leading candidate to replace him. Trump.  Lara Trump. ? BREAKING: Lara Trump is seriously considering making a run for Senate to replace Thom Tillis, per NOTUS North Carolina is her home state, so it could certainly happen! That’d be a MASSIVE upgrade! pic.twitter.com/RqWWRjQc6E — Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) June 29, 2025 I love it when a plan comes together! She would be FANTASTIC! Out with the RINO, in with a strong member of the Trump family! The Hindustan Times lists potentially replacements for Tillis: Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said Sunday he will not seek reelection. This comes a day after he opposed President Donald Trump's Big Beautiful Bill, leading to the president threatening him about the election next year. With Tillis' seat vacated next year, several potential replacements names have surfaced, including Trump's daughter-in-law Lara. “In Washington over the last few years, it’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking are becoming an endangered species,” Tillis said in a lengthy statement on Sunday. “Sometimes those bipartisan initiatives got me into trouble with my own party, but I wouldn’t have changed a single one." Breakdown of candidates that could replace Sen Thom Tillis Speculated GOP contenders include Rep Richard Hudson, former Rep Patrick McHenry, Lara Trump, RNC Chair Michael Whatley, Rep Pat Harrigan, and Rep Addison McDowell. But this isn't even that new of an idea. The Carolina Journal reported back in December of 2024 that Lara Trump had a 65% (Lara Trump) to 11% (Thom Tillis) lead in a hypothetical matchup even back then: A new poll by Victory Insights reveals shifting dynamics for the 2026 U.S. Senate race in North Carolina. The survey, conducted from November 26–29 among 800 likely voters, examined potential matchups involving incumbent Republican Senator Thom Tillis, Republican Lara Trump, and Democratic Governor Roy Cooper. The poll shows Trump securing 65% of support, outpacing Tillis, who garners just 11%. Approximately 24% of respondents remain undecided. Victory Insights suggests that Trump’s appeal among grassroots conservatives gives her a strong advantage, particularly given dissatisfaction with Tillis among some pro-Trump Republicans. “A substantial portion of the Republican base believes Tillis to be insufficiently conservative on several issues,” said Dr. Andy Jackson, director of the Civitas Center for Public Integrity at the John Locke Foundation. “Delegates to the 2023 North Carolina Republican Convention voted to censure Tillis over his supposed deviances from the party platform.” Lara Trump, a Wilmington native, and campaign advisor and daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump, dominates in a hypothetical Republican primary against Tillis. Trump was born in Wilmington, graduated from Laney High School there, and then from NC State University. She married Eric Trump, President-Elect Donald Trump’s son, in 2014. She’s been chair of the Republican National Committee since March, 2024. When Sen Richard Burr, R-NC, retired in 2022 there was some internal discussion among Republicans about Lara Trump running for that seat. “It would be an incredible thing. It’s my home state, a state I love so much, and look, I think we need some strong Republicans in Washington, DC. We had a great run with the Senate and the House this go-round, but you know, let’s see what happens,” she said during an interview on Fox News in 2022. Tillis, former Speaker of the NC House, led a dramatic shift in state policy toward a more fiscally conservative starting in 2011 when Republicans took control of the state legislature for the first time in a century. He won his Senate seat 2014 and was re-elected in 2020.