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Senator Thom Tillis will not seek re-election after President Trump vowed to challenge him in his upcoming primary for voting against a first reading of the President’s flagship Big Beautiful Bill.
In a statement, Senator Tillis made only a glancing reference to the controversy over his vote at the weekend, and said “it’s not a hard choice” for him not to seek re-election.
“As many of my colleagues have noticed over the last year, and at times even joked about, I haven’t exactly been excited about running for another term,” he wrote.
He continued, “I still look forward to continuing to serve North Carolina over the next 18 months. I look forward to solely focusing on producing meaningful results without the distraction of raising money or campaigning for another election.”
In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, President Trump ripped into Tillis for his vote, accusing him of making a “BIG MISTAKE for America, and the wonderful people of North Carolina.”
Trump went on to say that he would support a primary challenge against the senator.
“Numerous people have come forward wanting to run in the Primary against “Senator Thom” Tillis. I will be meeting with them over the coming weeks, looking for someone who will properly represent the Great People of North Carolina and, so importantly, the United States of America. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump said.
President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill narrowly advanced in the Republican-controlled Senate on Saturday.
Senators voted 51-49 to begin debate on the 940-page bill that would fund the President’s flagship policies, including his mass-deportation and immigration agenda, tax cuts and increased military spending.
The bill passed after hours of delay. Republican leaders and Vice President JD Vance worked furiously to persuade holdouts to vote in favour of the bill.
Hardliners Rick Scott, Mike Lee, Cynthia Lummis and Ron Johnson were all persuaded to vote in favour.
In the end, only two Republicans, Rand Paul and Thomas Tillis, voted against opening debate.
The bill is now due for a “vote-a-rama” in the Senate today, as amendments are made before the bill goes to a formal vote.
