Top GOP senator announces re-election bid for 2026

FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Tom Cotton, chair of the Republican Conference and Select Committee on Intelligence, revealed his plans to run for re-election in Arkansas in 2026, telling Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview how he plans to help build on the GOP majority for the next Congress and sharpen his focus on national security, namely the threat posed by communist China. 

“It’s been a great honor and privilege to serve the people of Arkansas in the United States Senate,” he said, pointing to several GOP accomplishments. 

The Arkansas Republican is going into his re-election bid with a whopping $8 million in cash on hand between his campaign and leadership accounts, his campaign said. This is more than triple the amount he had for his 2020 campaign, in which he handily defeated his opponent. 

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Cotton has amassed 135,000 donations, coming from tens of thousands of people from each of the state’s 75 counties, per his campaign. 

Cotton also boasts endorsements from all statewide officials in Arkansas, including Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Lieutenant Governor Leslie Rutledge, Attorney General Tim Griffin, Secretary of State Cole Jester, Treasurer John Thurston, Auditor of State Dennis Milligan and Land Commissioner Tommy Land, all Republicans.

This support is in addition to the backing of congressional Republicans Sen. John Boozman, and Reps. Rick Crawford, Steve Womack, French Hill and Bruce Westerman—all of Arkansas’ D.C. delegation.

“Senator Cotton is fortunate to have overwhelming support from Arkansans who recognize that he has fought and delivered for conservative values,” said Brian Colas, Cotton’s campaign adviser, in a statement.

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The senator also has the endorsements of several GOP senators he serves alongside, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota, Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso of Wyoming, and Sens. Tim Sheehy of Montana, Jim Banks of Indiana, Bernie Moreno of Ohio, and Tommy Tuberville and Katie Britt of Alabama.

“A fellow combat veteran, Tom Cotton’s entire career has been about serving the American people – whether it was on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan or at home in Congress. As chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, he is a tireless warrior for the America First agenda, fighting to secure the border, rebuild our military, bring down costs, and restore common sense in D.C. The people of Arkansas are blessed to have Tom as their voice in the Senate, and I’m proud to give him my endorsement,” Sheehy said in a statement. 

In his own statement, Tuberville noted that Cotton was born in Camden, Arkansas, a state “that holds a special place in my heart.”

“Tom’s a conservative fighter who puts America first. He’s tough on crime, strong on national security, and understands the Constitution. I’m honored to serve with Senator Cotton and look forward to his leadership in the Republican Party for years to come,” he added. 

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While a significant portion of Cotton’s time in the Senate has been spent pushing back on Democratic policies, the senator added, “I’m very excited now. We have a chance for at least the next four years with President Trump and a Republican Congress to get our state and get our nation back on track.”

Cotton was first elected to the Senate in 2014 and was re-elected in 2020. He is now seeking his third term in the upper chamber. 

Now, with Republicans holding a trifecta of power in Washington, D.C., he’ll have several years to advance key policies that he likely would not be able to if Democrats led Congress. 

“I’ve been in the majority. I’ve been in the minority. It’s much better to be in the majority,” he said. 

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He doesn’t expect Democrats to come to power anytime soon, either. “I’m very confident that we’re not just going to keep our majority in the Senate, but we’re going to grow our majority next year,” he said in reference to the 2026 Senate election map. 

Cotton’s latest venture is his newly-released book, “Seven Things You Can’t Say About China,” which just became a #1 New York Times bestseller. “Most Americans have a rightly low opinion of Communist China, but however bad you think the Chinese Communist Party is, or dangerous it is to America, it’s actually much worse,” he said.

“I think the success we’ve had in the first week since the book was published just reflects how many Americans, how many Arkansans are concerned about communist China,” the senator said, adding that it will be a “centerpiece of my campaign.”