Figuring Out Where to File Your Campaign Finance Reports

ElectaFile Short Summary: Figuring out where to file your campaign finance reports turns on the type of committee, the geography of your candidate or issue, or both. We’ll explain….

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“Where to File…?”

Let’s say you’re a candidate, a would-be treasurer, or somebody who wants to get politically active by supporting candidates or issues.

This post will point you in the right direction.

You either file with the NC State Board of Elections in Raleigh or in the County Board of Elections in the county seat of your home county.

If you remember one thing, remember that “where to file” depends largely on the geography of the office or issue you’re supporting…

If you remember another thing, in three of the four situations we’re writing about, the test for where to file is objective. In only one does the answer require some discretion.

First, an easy objective rule for candidates: the following types of candidates must file with the NC State Board of Elections in Raleigh:

Council of State Offices (Governor and all the statewide elected executive officers you hear about from time to time…)

North Carolina Senate & House of Representatives

District Attorneys

All Judicial Offices (Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Superior Court, District Court…you name it…)

*Geographic Note: This rule makes some sense if you think that all of these offices could have electoral districts that cross county lines*

Second, another easy objective rule for candidates: candidates for county and municipal elected offices file with the county board of elections (here’s a link to the State Board’s index of county board addresses).

Here are some examples:

County Commissioner

School Board

Register of Deeds

Clerk of Superior Court

Sheriff

Soil and Water Conservation District Supervisors

Mayors and City/Town Council Members/Commissioner Members

*Geographic Note: This rule makes sense because each of these offices sits fully within one county…it does not cross county lines...*

Third, it’s an easy objective rule on political party committees. All political party committees and their subordinates (e.g., Republican Chess Players of Wilson County or Democratic Rocket Scientists of Catawba County) file with the State Board of Elections.

Fourth, the rule on political action committees requires some judgment as to the “appropriate Board”. Picking the correct board with which to file depends on who and what the PAC will support.

On the one hand, PACs supporting issues or candidates with multi-county geography such as for statewide office, the legislature, judicial offices, district attorneys, and candidates in more than one county file with the State Board. Thus, the test turns on geography of the office.

On the other hand, PACs supporting candidates for office or issues in a single county or municipality file with the County Board.

So, on the question of where to file, you have two choices: the State Board and one of 100 county boards. The answer depends on the type of the candidate or race you are supporting and/or the type of committee you’re registering.

Multi-county candidate committees and all political party committees file with the State. PACs supporting multi-county candidates or multi-county issues file with the State.

Single-county candidates and single-county PACs file with the County.

That’s all for now. Stay tuned for our next post on “How to File…”

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What is ElectaFile.com? ElectaFile offers easy and affordable electronic "click to file" services with the NC State Board and County Boards. ElectaFile is web-based and accessible from Macs and PCs with an internet connection. ElectaFile is transactionally-priced so you only pay a small fee if you file using ElectaFile. If you need a free consultation on your situation, please let us know. If ElectaFile can help, it will. We are not your treasurer or your lawyer. If you need a professional treasurer or an attorney, ElectaFile regularly refers folks to professionals on all sides of the aisle.