First reported by Fox News, former North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper’s Senate campaign spent over $250,000 on private security. Federal records reviewed by Fox News Digital shed light on $277,312.28 spent on security-related services during the 2026 election cycle. The funds were directed to two vendors: Foresight Solutions and Frontpoint. Foresight Solutions provides customized security assessments, workplace safety training, de-escalation methods, conflict resolution, and violence prevention. Frontpoint offers home-security systems aiming to protect residences and families.
This expenditure has become a point of contention as Cooper deals with Republican critiques over his tenure as governor. The GOP critiques encompass his record on policing, criminal justice reform, cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and inmate releases during the COVID-19 era. Republicans have also linked Cooper to the high-profile killing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on a Charlotte light rail, attributing such events to what they describe as Cooper’s soft stance on crime. Cooper’s reforms included a racial equity task force that proposed changes to cash bail systems.
Republican strategist Mark Bednar, previously a communications director for notable political figures, called out Cooper’s “hypocrisy.” In a statement to Fox News Digital, Bednar emphasized that voters are concerned about perceived priorities, pointing to Cooper’s early criminal releases and opposition to law enforcement collaborations with immigration officials.
A Cooper campaign representative contested these accusations, emphasizing Cooper’s tough-on-crime measures and legislation during his time as both governor and attorney general. The spokesperson highlighted Cooper’s work in making legislation that addressed criminals more stringently while criticizing his election opponent, Michael Whatley, for a relevant appointment.
During his tenure as North Carolina’s attorney general, Cooper was pivotal in crafting laws to tackle drug-related offenses, allowing judges discretion in handling violent offenders, and increasing law enforcement salaries.
Whatley’s camp responded firmly, accusing Cooper of failing to address major issues effectively and blaming him for the release of convicts without additional court battles, a contrast to strategies in other states like Colorado and Illinois.
Alec Schemmel, a Politics Reporter, contributed from Charlotte, North Carolina, though he currently works in the Washington D.C.-Baltimore Metro Area.