'My first choice': Trump endorses daughter-in-law for North Carolina Senate; Who is Lara Trump?

US President Donald Trump suggested his daughter‑in‑law, Lara Trump, as his first preference for a possible replacement for Republican senator Thom Tillis, who will not seek re-election in North Carolina after breaking ranks with Trump over tax‑cut and spending bill. “Somebody that would really be great is Lara,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while returning from a trip to Florida. “She grew up there, but they live in Florida. She’s a great person, Lara Trump. I mean, that would always be my first choice. But she doesn’t live there now, but she’s there all the time.”Lara Trump is native of Wilmington, North Carolina. In 2014, she tied the knot with Eric Trump, the second son of Donald and Ivana Trump , at Mar-a-Lago.She served as co‑chair of the Republican National Committee ahead of the 2024 election, briefly considered running for Florida’s open Senate seat when Marco Rubio left to become secretary of state, and earlier this year began hosting the weekly Fox News programme My View with Lara Trump. The North Carolina contest is expected to be one of the few truly competitive battles in the 2026 midterm elections, when control of both chambers of Congress hangs in the balance. Tillis was among only three Republicans to vote against Trump’s signature measure, which narrowly passed the Senate on Tuesday and now returns to the House of Representatives for potential final approval. Thom Tillis cited concerns that proposed Medicaid cuts could hurt his constituents, a stance that drew Trump’s ire and preceded the senator’s decision to step aside after one term. Trump had signalled he was open to backing primary challengers before Tillis made his announcement. While the Republican‑controlled House is viewed as competitive next year, Democrats face an uphill climb in the Senate, where the GOP holds a 53‑47 advantage. Apart from Tillis and Maine’s Susan Collins, all Republicans defending seats in 2026 represent states Trump carried comfortably in the 2024 presidential race, including North Carolina, which he won by three percentage points. On the Democratic side, former US representative Wiley Nickel is the most prominent declared candidate. Party strategists are still hoping former governor Roy Cooper, who remains popular statewide, will enter the race.