'Unapologetically MAGA' primary challenger tests GOP senator’s 'conservative bona fides'

When far-right MAGA Republicans accused other members of their party of being RINOs (Republicans In Name Only), that doesn't necessarily mean they aren't conservative. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) are often attacked as RINOs for disagreeing with President Donald Trump at times, but their voting records are generally conservative.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina), who is up for reelection in 2026, is frequently called a RINO by MAGA Republicans. But his voting record is far from liberal or progressive.

NOTUS reporters Calen Razor and Ursula Perano detail the challenges that Tillis faces in his quest for reelection in 2026. His first hurdle is getting through North Carolina's GOP U.S. Senate primary, and his second is winning the general election.

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In January, far-right businessman Andy Nilsson, who describes himself as "unapologetically MAGA," filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and announced a primary challenge against Tillis.

"With his Senate seat up for grabs next year," Razor and Perano report, "Tillis insists his conservative credentials are in just as good of a standing as his bipartisan ones."

The NOTUS reporters add, however, that Tillis "isn’t the sort of MAGA boogeyman Democrats love to campaign against."

"He doesn't shy away from criticizing GOP tactics he disagrees with, even when they're coming from President Donald Trump, and his national name recognition is far lower than recently targeted Senate Republicans like Ted Cruz, Rick Scott or Josh Hawley," Razor and Perano observe. "But Tillis, who's in his second term in the Senate, is a devout member of the Senate GOP. He's stood beside Trump in each of the president's impeachment trials. And, this term, he's voted to advance every one of Trump's Cabinet nominees. He hardly ever defects from the GOP position, even if he occasionally attempts to legislate on a bipartisan basis."

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Tillis stresses that his willingness to work on "bipartisan" legislative doesn't mean his voting record isn't conservative.

The North Carolina senator told NOTUS, "If people want to talk about they've got more conservative bona fides than me, name the place and the venue. Now, the fact that I may be respectful to people and not a name-caller and bombastic, I know that counts against me. I'm OK with that.”

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Read the full NOTUS article at this link.