Cal Cunningham has won the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate seat to challenge Republican incumbent Thom Tillis.
Cunningham claimed victory in a race to the nomination that got a little tight as the primary drew near. That's because a Republican super PAC spent nearly $3 million boosting one of his opponents, Erica Smith.
“Obviously this was an unprecedented, and very deceptive effort by a Mitch McConnell-aligned super PAC,” says Cunningham. “And so we had to call it out. I spoke directly to voters, and we talked about how the truth still matters. Talking about the issues, and connecting about the issues is what this campaign should be about.”
Cunningham, who was born in Winston-Salem and raised in Lexington, had the backing of Washington Democrats. His military career, centrist views, and fundraising advantage propelled him to victory over Smith, who ran on a more liberal platform.
In the November election, he'll face Thom Tillis, who won easily over three lesser-known opponents in his Republican primary and is seeking a second term
This is Cunningham's second swing at running for U.S. Senate, but he did serve one term as a state senator in the North Carolina General Assembly nearly two decades ago.