With grocery bills climbing and health care costs squeezing household budgets, former Gov. Roy Cooper is taking aim at the pocketbook issues he believes will define his U.S. Senate race against Republican Michael Whatley, framing his campaign as a direct response to what he calls an economy tilted against working families.

Western North Carolina’s next election cycle is already shaping up amid a volatile mix of entrenched incumbents, disaster recovery fallout and deepening national divides, with competitive races stretching from the U.S. Senate on down to county-level offices. 

While marquee statewide contests appear to be headed toward familiar General Election matchups, cracks are emerging down the ballot, where public trust and institutional legitimacy are demanding attention from voters now more than any other time in recent memory.