Whatley gave sex offender access to young people

Michael Whatley appointed sex offender Harvey West to high-ranking positions in the North Carolina Republican Party. Now, it appears that West may have had access to young adults while serving in those roles.

Whatley led the North Carolina Republican Party from 2019 to 2024. The Asheville Watchdog reported that Whatley appointed West to two different committees during this period: the party’s 1st Congressional District Committee and its Plan of Organization Committee.

In 2000, when he was 28 years old, West pleaded guilty to taking indecent liberties with a minor. He was accused of having sexual relations with two 14-year-olds and one 16-year-old. He served a six-year prison sentence and was required to register as a sex offender upon release.

West maintains that he is innocent and only pleaded guilty to avoid a longer sentence. He told PolitiFact that he was open about his criminal record with the North Carolina Republican Party before being appointed to the roles.

It can now be confirmed that Whatley presided over nearly 30 North Carolina Republican Party State Central Committee meetings where both West and members of the North Carolina Teenage Republicans were in attendance.

Whatley’s official Facebook page uploaded a photo from one of these meetings in August 2022 that shows West seated beside the then-chair of the North Carolina Teenage Republicans.

West’s positions allowed him to attend other events with young people. In September 2020, he was photographed embracing the chairwoman of the North Carolina Young Republicans at a get-out-the-vote event in Plymouth, NC. A few months later, he posed for a photo at the state GOP convention that was uploaded to the Inner Banks Young Republicans’ Instagram account.

West also served as a delegate to the 2020 and 2024 Republican National Conventions, as did multiple high school students.

In September 2019, West and Whatley were both photographed at a recruitment dinner for President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign. Children and teenagers attended this event as well.

West has not been accused of any improprieties since finishing his prison sentence.

Whatley is now a candidate for the U.S. Senate facing former Gov. Roy Cooper. It is widely regarded as one of the most competitive Senate races of 2026.