Who is Roy Cooper? The NC governor could be a Democratic VP contender for Harris
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper could be Vice President Kamala Harris’ pick for her running mate if she wins the Democratic Party’s nomination to be president, now that President Joe Biden dropped out of the race Sunday.
Other politicians on the potentials list for VP candidates include Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania’s governor, and Andy Beshear, Kentucky’s governor. Harris spoke at an event Monday on the White House South Lawn but did not address her 2024 campaign plans or who potential running mates could be.
North Carolinians know Cooper as a longtime statewide elected official, but others across the U.S. may be hearing about him for the first time. Here’s a quick primer about the man who could be VP:
Why he’s a contender for VP
Cooper, 67, is finishing out his second term as governor. North Carolina law prevents governors from serving more than two consecutive terms.
He and Harris, both former state attorneys general, have known each other for years.
Cooper has led the Democratic Governors Association, and he has been a frequent surrogate and champion for the Biden-Harris administration.
He has worked well enough with Republicans who control the General Assembly to bring major new jobs to the state, from Apple to Toyota. The state often tops lists as the best places to do business.
His major issues as governor have been public education funding and teacher raises, Medicaid expansion, expanding infrastructure, addressing climate change and leading the state’s response during the coronavirus pandemic. Most of the criticism he has received as governor has been over his administration’s handling of hurricane relief and restrictions he imposed during the pandemic.
North Carolina’s largest voting group is unaffiliated voters, followed by Democrats and then Republicans. Races in this swing state are often very close, and Cooper won election to the mansion twice.
Cooper’s political career
Cooper practiced law in Nash County for 18 years before running for the state House, where he served from 1987 to 1991, and then the state Senate from 1991 to 2001, where he served as Senate majority leader. He then ran for state attorney general and served four terms, starting in 2001, before becoming governor in 2017. Democrats were in power during Cooper’s early career, then Republicans took control of the General Assembly after the 2010 election.
His biggest disagreements with legislative Republicans during his time as governor were over COVID-19 restrictions and Medicaid expansion. While the pandemic ended, a new law in 2023 limited the powers of the governor to instill states of emergency and executive orders without agreement from other officials.
On Medicaid expansion, Cooper and Republicans reached a bipartisan agreement to pass expansion in 2023. Longstanding disagreements that remain include the amount of teacher raises in the annual budget and the taxpayer funding of private school vouchers, which Cooper opposes. Cooper also vetoes what he has described as “culture wars” bills, though Republicans currently have enough votes to overturn his vetoes.
Where Cooper went to school
Cooper went to both undergraduate and law school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Cooper hometown, family
Cooper, whose full name is Roy Asberry Cooper III, is from the town of Nashville, North Carolina, in Nash County. His father Roy Cooper Jr. was a lawyer and farmer, and his mother, Beverly Cooper, was a school teacher. His brother Pell is a judge.
Roy Cooper is married to Kristin Cooper, also an attorney, and they met at the General Assembly, where she worked as legislative counsel. They have three grown daughters — Hilary, Natalie and Claire.
Cooper’s faith
Cooper belongs to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), a mainline Protestant denomination. He has served as an elder and taught Sunday school at his church, and in 2023 received a N.C. Council of Churches’ Faith Active In Public Life Award.
First pets
The Coopers have a rescue dog, a mixed breed named Violet. They also have a few cats and an honorary First Pet, Sadie the Dalmatian, whose owner is on the governor’s staff. Sadie is the pet most often seen on the mansion grounds and is friendly to visitors during events.
UNC, Canes and diet Sun Drop
Cooper likes celebrations, with the biggest non-policy or political-related grins reserved for things like the annual State Capitol Tree Lighting in downtown Raleigh or sports. He is a major UNC sports fan, especially basketball. He’s even cheered them on with a political rival but fellow Tar Heel, Republican House Speaker Tim Moore.
However, by far Cooper’s biggest fandom is reserved for the Carolina Hurricanes, which is North Carolina’s NHL team. He has dressed up in a Canes uniform for Halloween and cranked the siren that starts off Canes games.
And Cooper changed his Twitter bio to “diet soda sommelier” after a viral video of him talking about why he likes diet Sun Drop so much.
This story was originally published July 21, 2024 at 6:10 PM with the headline "Who is Roy Cooper? The NC governor could be a Democratic VP contender for Harris."
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