Republican who voted against ‘big, beautiful bill’ to step down after Trump threat

3 days ago 13

By Ali Swenson

June 30, 2025 — 6.58am

Washington: Republican senator Thom Tillis says he will not seek re-election next year after US President Donald Trump threatened to back a primary challenger in retribution for Tillis voting against advancing Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” on Saturday night.

Tillis, of North Carolina, made the abrupt announcement one day after he staked out his opposition to Trump’s tax breaks and spending cuts package because of its reductions to healthcare programs. He was one of two Republicans to vote against advancing the massive tax bill, which is forecast to add $US3.3 trillion to the nation’s debt.

Senator Thom Tillis walks to the chamber at the Capitol earlier this month.

“In Washington over the last few years, it’s become increasingly evident that leaders who are willing to embrace bipartisanship, compromise, and demonstrate independent thinking, are becoming an endangered species,” Tillis said in a lengthy statement.

His decision to step down creates a political opportunity for Democrats seeking to bolster their numbers in the 2026 midterm elections, creating a wide-open Senate race in a state that has long been a contested battleground.

It could also make Tillis a wild card in a party where few lawmakers are willing to risk Trump’s wrath by opposing his agenda or actions.

Tillis, who would have been up for a third term, said he was proud of his career in public service but acknowledged the difficult political environment for those who buck their party and go it alone.

Donald Trump speaks to the media at the White House on Friday.

“I look forward to having the pure freedom to call the balls and strikes as I see fit and representing the great people of North Carolina to the best of my ability,” Tillis said in a statement.

Republicans hold a 53-47 edge in the Senate.

Trump, in social posts, had berated Tillis for voting against the bill and accused Tillis of seeking publicity with his “no” vote. He threatened to campaign against him, accusing the senator of doing nothing to help his constituents after last year’s devastating floods in western North Carolina from Hurricane Helene.

“Tillis is a talker and complainer, NOT A DOER,” Trump wrote.

Senator Thom Tillis arrives at Fort Bragg earlier this month to hear President Donald Trump speak.

The Senate only narrowly advanced the tax-cut, immigration, border and military spending bill in a procedural vote late on Saturday during a marathon weekend session, voting 51-49 to open debate on the 940-page mega-bill.

Trump on social media hailed Saturday’s vote as a “great victory” for his “great, big, beautiful bill”, but as debate opened on Sunday morning, Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer said Republicans were about to pass “the single most expensive bill in US history, to give tax breaks to billionaires while taking away Medicaid, SNAP benefits and good paying jobs for millions of people”.

Some said Tillis’ decision was another sign of the dramatic transformation of the Republican Party under Trump, with few lawmakers critical of the president or his agenda remaining in office.

It “proves there is no space within the Republican Party to dissent over taking healthcare away from 11.8 million people”, said Lauren French, a spokesperson for the Senate Majority PAC, a political committee aligned with the chamber’s Democratic members.

North Carolina Republican Party chairman Jason Simmons said the party wishes Tillis well and “will hold this seat for Republicans in 2026”.

Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, chairman of the campaign arm for Senate Republicans, did not mention Tillis in a statement but said the party’s winning streak in North Carolina will continue. Scott noted that Trump won the state three times.

Tillis rose to prominence in North Carolina when, as a second-term state House member, he quit his IBM consultant job and led the Republican Party’s recruitment and fundraising efforts in the chamber for the 2010 elections. Republicans won majorities in the House and Senate for the first time in 140 years.

Tillis was later elected as state House speaker and helped enact conservative policies on taxes, gun rights, regulations and abortion while serving in the role for four years. He also helped push a state constitutional referendum to ban gay marriage, which was approved by voters in 2012 but was ultimately struck down by the courts as unconstitutional.

In 2014, Tillis helped flip control of the Senate to the Republicans after narrowly defeating Democratic senator Kay Hagan. During his more than a decade in office, he championed issues such as mental health and substance abuse recovery, Medicaid expansion and support for veterans.

As a more moderate Republican, Tillis became known for his willingness to work across the aisle on some issues.

That got him into trouble with his party at times, most notably in 2023 when North Carolina Republicans voted to censure him over several matters, including his challenges to certain immigration policies and his gun policy record.

“Sometimes those bipartisan initiatives got me into trouble with my own party,” Tillis said, “but I wouldn’t have changed a single one.”

AP, Reuters

Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world. Sign up for our weekly What in the World newsletter.