The North Carolina Republican Party voted to censure Sen. Thom Tillis Saturday during the party’s annual Greensboro convention, according to Washington Examiner.
The North Carolina Republican Party voted to censure @SenThomTillis during its annual GOP convention, accusing the state’s senior senator of violating the party’s platform on a number of key issues.https://t.co/tRQvhNs0Pg
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) June 10, 2023
The motion approved by Republican officials Saturday said Tillis committed “blatant violations of our party platform,” but did not specify what actions the senator took which were considered violations.
“Senator Tillis keeps his promises and delivers results,” Daniel Keylin, a spokesperson for Tillis, said to the Washington Examiner. “He will never apologize for his work passing the largest tax cut in history, introducing legislation to secure the border and end sanctuary cities, delivering desperately-needed funding to strengthen school safety, and protecting the rights of churches to worship freely based on their belief in traditional marriage.”
Censured lawmakers are not removed from office, nor are they punished. A censure vote is a symbolic expression of dissatisfaction toward a legislator’s voting record or behavior. (RELATED: Republican Oklahoma Lawmakers Censure ‘Non Binary’ Rep Who housed Fugitive In State Office)
Some Republicans sought to censor Tillis for years. The North Carolina senator initially opposed former President Donald Trump’s plan to fund building a wall on the southern border, failing to redeem himself among many conservatives aggrieved by his previous position when he changed his mind.
Last year, Tillis helped the Biden administration pass the Respect For Marriage Act, which many Republicans oppose.
“Sen. Tillis has a history of walking right on the edge of angering Republicans,” State Rep. Mark Brody said to WRAL News. “And this is the one where he finally stepped over.”
Sen. Thom Tillis served as a Republican in Congress since 2015. He was the state legislature’s House speaker when Republicans took power during the 2010 Tea Party wave.