Roy Cooper’s 2026 Senate campaign has spent more than $277,000 on private security services, according to Federal Election Commission records reviewed by Fox News Digital. The expenditures, paid to vendors Foresight Solutions and Frontpoint, cover services such as customized security assessments, workplace safety training, and home-security systems.

This spending has drawn sharp criticism from Republicans, who accuse Cooper—a former North Carolina governor and attorney general—of supporting policies that have made communities less safe. GOP critics highlight Cooper’s record on criminal justice reform, policing, cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and the early release of inmates during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Republicans have also cited the killing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on a Charlotte light rail train as emblematic of what they describe as Cooper’s "soft-on-crime" stance, including his backing of a racial equity task force that recommended changes to cash bail.

A GOP spokesperson stated, "The issue on voters' minds isn't whether Roy Cooper or any other Democrat deems it necessary to keep themselves safe, but the issue is when he and other Democrats prioritize their own security while trying to hide from voters' their soft-on-crime records that threaten local communities."

The campaign responded by pointing to Cooper’s 16 years as North Carolina attorney general, where he served as the state’s top law enforcement official, and to legislation he signed as governor aimed at targeting drug dealers, allowing judges discretion to detain violent offenders before trial, and increasing law enforcement pay.

Further GOP criticism contrasts Cooper’s record with that of Republican Michael Whatley, accusing Whatley of appointing Harvey Lee West—a convicted child sex predator who served time in prison—to a significant role within the North Carolina GOP during the pandemic, a claim supported by PolitiFact.

Fox News Digital also obtained an image of Cooper at a campaign rally in Durham, North Carolina, on April 9, 2026, accompanied by armed security.

In an election year described as tight, GOP officials assert that such perceived hypocrisy will resonate strongly with voters.

Sources