Michael Whatley
R · U.S. Senate, North Carolina · Tier 1/2
Tier 1/2, between “Firmly pro-Israel” and “Mainstream pro-Israel”
Former RNC and NC GOP chair, now the Republican Senate nominee against Roy Cooper for the open Tillis seat. Never elected to public office, he spoke on the defense of Israel at a September 2025 pastors summit in Raleigh and aligns with Trump’s ‘America First’ line, but has no voting record or authored legislation of his own. His backing is unconditional — “We stand by Israel, we stand with the Jewish people. There’s no question about it,” he told reporters at the Republican Jewish Coalition convention in September 2024 — and the RJC has endorsed him. Interviewed by Jewish Insider at the RJC’s leadership summit in Las Vegas (reported September 3, 2026), Whatley said “Israel has been and will be our No. 1 ally in the Middle East” and “we need to make absolutely sure that we have a senator who is going to fight for that relationship”; Jewish Insider reported that he “expressed unequivocal support for continued U.S. military aid to Israel.”
A 1/2. He has no leadership on the issue — a former party chair and lobbyist with no elected record, no authored Israel legislation or arms votes — which keeps him off a clean 1. His support is unconditional (“We stand by Israel, we stand with the Jewish people. There’s no question about it”), and no statement of his voicing concern for Palestinian civilians was found, which rules out a flat 2.
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elect26 places 2026 midterm candidates on a six-tier spectrum, from 1 (most pro-Israel) to 6 (most critical of Israel).