Whatley elevated Harvey West Jr. within the North Carolina Republican party ranks. West Jr. was arrested and charged for the statutory rape of three girls and pled guilty to “taking indecent liberties with a child.”
Whatley allegedly “snuffed” out concerns from Republican party activists and was warned multiple times. When asked about his relationship with West Jr., Whatley dodged the questions and his campaign attacked the media.
Whatley’s alleged embrace of West Jr. resulted in some North Carolina Republican party activists feeling “horrified.”
HEADLINE: “Revolt Grows As GOP Senate Hopeful Championed Convicted Child Sex Offender For Party Roles” [Raw Story, 3/11/26]
HEADLINE: “Michael Whatley’s Ties To Sex Offender Illustrate GOP Hypocrisy” [Paige Masten Op-Ed – Charlotte Observer, 3/13/26]
HEADLINE: “Michael Whatley’s Longstanding Ties To A Convicted Sex Offender Raise Questions” [Meidas Touch News, 3/23/26]
HEADLINE: “How Michael Whatley’s Senate Run Is Being Upended By A Sex Offender’s Picnic” [Washington Examiner, 3/31/26]
West Was Arrested And Charged With Statutory Rape Of Three Girls Between The ages OF 14 And 16. According to Asheville Watchdog, “West, 54, was a 28-year-old police officer in Washington, a small town in Beaufort County near the Outer Banks, in 1999 when he was arrested and charged with the statutory rape of three girls, two aged 14 and one aged 16. The charge is among the state’s most serious felonies and is defined legally as sexual intercourse with a person aged 15 or younger and the perpetrator is at least six years older. Consent is not a defense.” [Asheville Watchdog, 3/11/26]
West Pled Guilty To “Taking Indecent Liberties With A Child” And Served Six Years In Prison. According to Asheville Watchdog, “West agreed to plead guilty to 16 lesser charges of taking indecent liberties with a child and served six years in prison.” [Asheville Watchdog, 3/11/26]
West Was Elected To Attend The 2012 Republican National Convention As An Alternate Delegate But Stepped Down After News Stories About His Past Resurfaced. According to the Asheville Watchdog, “After his release from prison, West regained his right to vote and quickly became active in the local GOP leadership. He was elected to attend the 2012 Republican National Convention as an alternate delegate until news stories about his past surfaced and he stepped down.” [Asheville Watchdog, 3/11/26]
2026: West’s Involvement In Hosting A Forum For The Dare County School Board Received Pushback. According to the Asheville Watchdog, “The clouds burst unexpectedly in January when the Dare County school board – whose members are all Republican – hosted a forum for candidates in the March 3 primary elections. As the senior GOP leader in the region, West was asked to moderate the forum. For some voters, the visible link between him and the election of candidates to be entrusted with protecting children was too much. Allowing West to moderate ‘was an odd/unsettling choice, as pointed out by many, for a forum that would deal with school children,’ wrote Amanda ‘Mandy’ Haage Fuller to the Outer Banks Insider, a local news site. ‘Mr. West is a convicted sex offender.’” [Asheville Watchdog, 3/11/26]
West Hosted North Carolina’s Judicial Picnic, A Major Source Of Judicial Campaign Money, With Whatley’s Support. According to Asheville Watchdog, “But West remained active behind the scenes and established himself as a fundraiser in a newly created space. In 2018, North Carolina initiated partisan elections for all judicial offices, including for positions on the appellate and state Supreme courts. Seizing an opportunity to influence judicial candidates who are unaccustomed to raising money to campaign, West and his wife created an annual fundraising picnic they called the Down East Judicial Picnic. With support from Whatley; current state GOP chairman Jason Simmons; and such high-ranking incumbents as Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul Newby, Associate Justices Trey Allen and Philip Berger Jr., the event has emerged as a featured campaign stop and major source of judicial campaign money.” [Asheville Watchdog, 3/11/26]
Whatley “Snuffed Out” Complaints From Party Regulars About West’s Involvement. According to the Asheville Watchdog, “West’s dark past receded from public view and the few complaints from party regulars were snuffed out by Whatley and West’s other allies, many of whom took the position that he had served his time and cleaned his slate.” [Asheville Watchdog, 3/11/26]
West Claimed That He Was Open With North Carolina Party Leadership About His Past As A Sex Offender Since “Day One.” According to the Daily Beast, “West, in a candid conversation with the Daily Beast, said he was open with the party’s leadership about his past ‘from day one.’ That past includes charges of statutory rape involving three girls, two aged 14 and one aged 16, in 1999, when West was 28 years old and working as a police officer. ‘I openly discussed what happened. I openly discussed my time in prison. I openly discussed the charges. 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,’’ he said.” [Daily Beast, 3/16/26]
Michele Woodhouse Claimed That They Have Been Warning Whatley About West’s Since Whatley Was NCGOP Chair. According to the Daily Beast, “Michele Woodhouse, who ran for election to the U.S. House to represent North Carolina’s 11th Congressional district in 2022, said: ‘I’ve been warning Michael Watley about this since he was the NCGOP chair.’ Asked how the saga affects Republicans in the state, Woodhouse added, ‘I think it affects, now that Michael’s on the ballot, it affects his race and every down-ballot Republican. They’re all at risk now.’” [Daily Beast, 3/16/26]
Whatley Appointed West To The State Plan Of Organization Committee Multiple Times. According to NC Newsline, “Whatley appointed West to the state Plan of Organization Committee multiple times, including in 2024, according to PolitiFact.” [NC Newsline, 4/1/26]
Michele Woodhouse, A Republican Who Ran For Office, Claimed That Whatley Promoted West To The Plan Of Organization Committee And That Harvey Confirmed That. According to the Washington Examiner, “Michele Woodhouse, a Republican who ran for House in the state’s 11th Congressional District in 2021, said Whatley was being less than honest, deflecting the question to talk about West’s role as chairman of the 1st Congressional District Committee. ‘He appointed him to the Plan of Organization Committee on multiple occasions, and Harvey has confirmed that,’ she said. ‘Plus, Michael promoted the picnic.’” [Washington Examiner, 4/23/26]
When Asked Why West Was Promoted To A Position Of Authority, Whatley Claimed That “He Was Elected On His Own.” According to the Washington Examiner, “But the video shared with Secrets shows Whatley being confronted by an activist outside a recent fundraiser. He was asked why he had promoted West into a position of authority. ‘He was elected on his own,’ Whatley answered.” [Washington Examiner, 4/23/26]
Whatley And His Campaign Spokesman Did Not Respond To Questions About Whatley’s Relationship With West. According to the Asheville Watchdog, “I sought comment from Whatley and his campaign spokesman about his support of West by email and text but received no response. The Whatley campaign doesn’t provide contact information for the news media.” [Asheville Watchdog, 3/11/26]
Whatley’s Campaign Spokesperson Refused To Answer Questions About Whatley’s Relationship With Harvey West And Instead Criticized The Charlotte Observer. According to the Charlotte Observer, “The Watchdog noted West has since become an influential figure in GOP politics, reporting that he and his wife founded a popular fundraising event and that former party Chairman Michael Whatley appointed West to lead the GOP’s 1st Congressional District Committee and the party’s Plan of Organization Committee. Whatley is now the Republican nominee for North Carolina’s open U.S. Senate seat. A spokesman for Whatley’s campaign didn’t answer questions from an Observer reporter about West but provided a statement criticizing The Charlotte Observer and Democratic Senate candidate and former Gov. Roy Cooper.” [Charlotte Observer, 3/16/26]
Whatley Declined To Answer Questions About His Involvement With West. According to the Washington Examiner, “So far, Whatley has declined to answer. His campaign did not respond to Secrets’s questions about how long he had known about West’s past or whether he regrets being involved with a convicted sex offender.” [Washington Examiner, 3/31/26]
A Conservative Activist Claimed That “There’s Really Nothing Michael Whatley Could Do That Would Get Me To Vote For Him.” According to NC Newsline, “Woodhouse was more blunt. ‘There’s really nothing Michael Whatley could do that would get me to vote for him,’ she said.” [NC Newsline, 4/1/26]
State Senator Sophia Chitlik Claimed That She Was “Horrified” That Whatley’s “Egregious Employment Of A Child Predator.” According to NC Newsline, “‘As the mother of a young child and as a public servant, I’m horrified that we have to call out Michael Whatley’s egregious employment of a child predator as alarming in the first place,’ said Sen. Sophia Chitlik (D-Durham), flanked by a photo of Whatley with West and West’s mugshot on poster boards. ‘I’m here to define Michael Whatley’s enablement as what it really is: dangerous and, frankly, soft on crime.’” [NC Newsline, 4/1/26]