Live updates: Trump travels to Gastonia today for Whatley’s NC Senate campaign
President Donald Trump is set to return to the Charlotte region Wednesday to campaign alongside Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley in Gastonia.
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Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks at 7 p.m. at the Gastonia Municipal Airport, where he also rallied during his 2024 presidential campaign. Whatley, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee and North Carolina Republican Party, lives in Gaston County and has been endorsed by Trump in his race against former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.
The two are competing for the U.S. Senate seat held by Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, who is not seeking reelection.
Trump’s appearance also puts a renewed spotlight on his relationship with Whatley, whose political career has been closely tied to the president. Whatley led the Republican National Committee during Trump’s successful 2024 campaign and previously chaired the North Carolina Republican Party. He has emphasized Trump less frequently at some campaign stops in recent months, including during a July appearance in Gastonia where he mentioned the president only twice after repeatedly invoking him at his Senate campaign launch a year earlier.
Whatley said in a post on X announcing the visit that Trump “needs an ally in the Senate” and called Gastonia his home.
Check back throughout the day for updates.
Police are closing intersections in Gastonia, including Union/Robinson, Gaston Day School/Union and Union/Dawnwood. “Local residents will be escorted into neighborhoods,” Gastonia police said. “Please be patient.”
Fans hoping to see Luke Kuechly at Gastonia’s Whataburger on Wednesday evening will have to wait.
The meet-and-greet, originally scheduled from 5-7 p.m., has been postponed due to road closures resulting from President Donald Trump’s visit to Gastonia. A rescheduled date will be announced soon.
Kuechly, who spent eight seasons as a linebacker for the Carolina Panthers, was set to meet with fans and take photos. Kuechly was the youngest recipient of the AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award when he won it in 2013, and he is now a Pro Football Hall of Famer.
Republicans continued their criticism of Cooper, the Democratic Senate nominee, ahead of Trump’s visit, saying Cooper “fights for dangerous criminals.” Republicans biggest point of criticism focuses on a list of 3,500 prisoners in a 2021 settlement over prison conditions. And they’ve argued some prisoners released went on to re-offend.
“President Trump and Michael Whatley will always put North Carolina first and today’s visit to Gastonia is firing up voters to elect a true fighter this November,” said Republican National Committee spokeswoman Emma Hall.
Democrats criticized Whatley for “cheering on the Iran War as it spikes his stock portfolio and drives up gas prices.” State Sen. Woodson Bradley, a Charlotte Democrat, held a news conference in front of a gas station sign as she criticized Whatley’s past as an oil lobbyist.
“So if he’s advocating for policies that benefit his bottom line as a candidate, imagine how he could abuse that seat in the United States Senate, just to enrich himself at our expense and off of hardworking peoples’ backs. Let’s not find that out, North Carolina,” Bradley said.
The White House said in a news release President Donald Trump is visiting to “highlight how his administration is restoring law and order across the country.” Its news release highlighted crime improvements across North Carolina, including in Charlotte. The descriptions contrast previous assertions by top Trump officials.
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In September 2025, Vice President J.D. Vance said Charlotte’s murder rate rivaled the poorest countries in the world — a claim that is false. Vance was visiting Concord when he made the speech after the killing of Iryna Zarutska on Charlotte’s Blue Line in August 2025.
In North Carolina’s 2026 U.S. Senate race, Republicans are focused heavily on crime and public safety, including airing ads trying to tie former Gov. Cooper to specific murders based on a COVID-19 prison release deal.
President Trump’s visit to North Carolina to stump for Whatley comes as Whatley has struggled to make inroads against his opponent, former Gov. Roy Cooper. A poll released last week by Elon University shows Cooper with an 11% lead over Whatley, a margin that remained unchanged from a poll conducted the month prior.
That’s due in part to Trump’s own unpopularity in North Carolina, a state that voted for him three times. The same Elon poll found that just 31% of North Carolinians approve of the job Trump is doing as president. That’s the lowest approval rating recorded by the Elon poll since Trump took office in January 2025.
A separate poll released last week by East Carolina University showed Cooper with a slightly smaller lead over Whatley, 46% to 39%. But 14% of voters said they remain undecided, so the opportunity remains for Whatley to tighten the race.
Still, Trump acknowledged the challenge at last week’s GOP midterm convention in Dallas, saying, “In North Carolina, you have a little more difficult case, because people don’t quite get it, but they’re going to find out.”
CLT’s public overlook will close at 3 p.m. and reopen at 8 a.m. Thursday, airport officials announce.
Drivers in Charlotte and Gaston County should expect disruptions around the airport Wednesday.
Extensive closures are expected later on Wednesday afternoon and evening. Police are urging people who do not need to be in the area to avoid it if possible. Read more.
“Soft” road closures begin in the area of Union Road, Gaston Day School Road, Robinson Road and Bud Wilson Road in Gastonia, police said.
“These roads will remain accessible to local traffic, but drivers should expect delays and changes in traffic patterns. More road closures will begin at 2:30.”
“The Union Road and Gaston Day School Road area will be particularly impacted,” police said. “Closures will remain in place through the evening as needed.”
Reporter Joe Marusak, sports intern Will Dehmel, Deputy Opinion Editor Paige Masten and Government Editor Josh Bergeron contributed reporting.
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This story was originally published September 16, 2026 at 8:44 AM.
