WASHINGTON — Republicans are reallocating up to $10 million from North Carolina’s Senate race to support efforts in Kansas, according to information obtained by The Post. The Senate Leadership Fund, which is aligned with Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), initially allocated $71 million to support North Carolina GOP nominee Michael Whatley but has now decided to cut its losses after spending $30 million.
Sources indicate that at least $8.2 million is being redirected to incumbent Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), with the total amount for Kansas potentially exceeding $10 million before the Election Day on November 3. Additionally, at least $20 million is being diverted to Iowa to assist GOP Rep. Ashley Hinson in retaining the seat left vacant by retiring Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa). Another $14 million is being allocated to the Ohio Senate race, where Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio) is campaigning to complete the term of Vice President JD Vance.
A source stated, “SLF’s job is to maintain the majority and this move reflects the most effective and efficient use of resources to do exactly that.” Both the pro-Trump super PAC MAGA Inc. and the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) have also ceased future spending in North Carolina through Election Day.
In the latest RealClearPolitics polling average, Democratic former North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper leads Whatley by nine percentage points. Earlier this year, a Republican campaign operative predicted that the North Carolina race would be “probably one of the most expensive races in the country.”
Currently, the GOP holds a 53-47 majority in the Senate, meaning Democrats need to flip a net of four seats to regain control after two years in the minority. Marshall is facing a competitive re-election challenge from Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton, a Methodist pastor. The RCP average shows Marshall leading by just 1.5 percentage points in a state he won by over 11 percentage points in 2020. Recent surveys from Emerson College and Wedgewood Polls indicate Hamilton is ahead by two percentage points.
The Senate Leadership Fund recently released an advertisement criticizing Hamilton as “too extreme for Kansas,” while Marshall’s campaign has revisited criticisms from the Democratic primary regarding Hamilton’s handling of an internal investigation into a “child predator” at his church two decades ago, with a new ad set to launch on Friday.