New $2.3M ad campaign ties Whatley to convicted sex offender as NC’s US Senate race tightens

A Democratic-aligned political group is launching a $2.3 million ad campaign targeting Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley over his ties to Harvey West, a longtime party fundraiser and convicted sex offender.

The digital ads, run by WinSenate PAC, will air on YouTube, smart TVs, and streaming services. They come as outside groups supporting Whatley, a former chairman of the RNC and NCGOP, have ramped up attacks on his Democratic opponent, former Gov. Roy Cooper.

“A police officer charged with molesting three young girls,” the ad states, as news reports on the controversy are shown. “Then Michael Whatley hired him, even though West was open about his criminal record.”

The ad includes a selfie of the two men that West posted to his Facebook page.

Heading into midterms, NCGOP faces mounting backlash from its conservative base

West was arrested in 2000 and charged with the statutory rape of three minors while serving as a police officer in the Outer Banks. Those charges were reduced to five counts of indecent liberties with a child as part of a plea deal, under which West was sentenced to six years in prison and required to register as a sex offender. He was released in 2006.

Years later, during Whatley’s tenure as chair of the North Carolina Republican Party, he appointed West to the party’s rulemaking committee multiple times. West also served as the state GOP’s 1st Congressional District chair under Whatley and hosted a high-profile judicial fundraiser that has put the Republican judges who attended it under scrutiny.

“I openly discussed what happened. I openly discussed my time in prison. I openly discussed the charges,” West said in an interview with The Daily Beast earlier this year. “And I would tell people, ‘If you want me around, I will work and be glad to do so. If you don’t want me, I’ll go on down the road.’”

Whatley’s ties to West resurfaced after reporting by the Asheville Watchdog in March, which covered backlash to West’s selection to moderate a Dare County Board of Education primary forum. Conservative outrage mounted soon after, leading to West’s resignation as chair of the district party.

Polling of the North Carolina U.S. Senate race has consistently shown Whatley behind Cooper, often by double digits, but recent surveys have found that the share of voters who view Cooper unfavorably has grown. That shift may reflect the success of attacks on Cooper by Whatley and political groups supporting him.

Whatley has repeatedly condemned the release of thousands of prisoners under a settlement between Cooper’s administration and civil rights groups due to the dangers of COVID-19.

Whatley has not discussed his connection to West publicly, and rebuffed an NC Newsline reporter who asked why he chose to appoint West despite his criminal background. “Probably the better question would be, ‘Why did Roy Cooper release thousands of hardened criminals from prison?’” he responded.

The state released an estimated 3,500 inmates from prison early under the terms of the settlement, according to the Department of Public Safety. At least some of these inmates had been convicted of violent crimes, according to the Charlotte Observer, including offenders who had been sentenced to life in prison but were eligible for parole. Multiple inmates were in prison for murder.

NC Newsline has not been invited to attend any of Whatley’s campaign events since that press conference, as Whatley’s campaign has taken an increasingly confrontational approach to the media.

His campaign has also slammed Cooper, 69, as an establishment politician whose decades in government have put him out of touch with the average North Carolinian.

Whatley, 57, has also been a longtime fixture in North Carolina politics. He began his career as a GOP operator more than two decades ago as chief of staff to Republican U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole in 2004 before spending a decade lobbying in Washington.

The new ads highlighting Whatley’s ties to West come in addition to an $11 million advertising investment announced by the Democratic-aligned political group Senate Majority PAC on Thursday as outside spending in the race ramps up. While Cooper has maintained a hefty lead over Whatley in fundraising, outside spending between the candidates is neck-and-neck.