An investigation into missing campaign finance reports from candidates in Rockingham County, including nearly two decades worth of reports from county Sheriff Sam Page, will take place starting next week by the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE).
The missing reports came to light after an investigation by Charlotte TV station WBTV.
Page, who is challenging Senate Leader Phil Berger for his seat in the 2026 Republican primary, has been the sheriff in Rockingham County since 1998.
He also ran for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor in the 2024 primary election.
WBTV contacted the Rockingham County Board of Elections (BOE) to try to locate Page’s campaign finance reports before 2017 but was told those records couldn’t be located. They were also told that no current county board of elections employees worked at that office prior to June 2020.
According to state law, county boards of elections are required to retain campaign finance reports and other filings while the candidate holds public office. The county may then destroy those records three years after the candidate has left office and closed all their candidate committees.
However, candidates and treasurers are subject to records retention requirements that are different from those of county board offices.
Pursuant to G.S. § 163-278.35, a candidate committee treasurer is only required to retain reports, records, and accounts for two years from the date of the election to which such reports refer.
This means the treasurer for Page’s campaign committee was not required to retain the records at issue beyond November 2020.
According to NCSBE spokesman Pat Gannon, NCSBE contacted Trevor Gardner, the current treasurer for Page’s campaign committee, as they are assisting the Rockingham County BOE in looking for the reports. They asked him if he had any further information regarding the records or any contact information for Page’s former campaign committee chairman, Ed Gunn, who would have served during the time in question.
Gardner replied in an emailed statement that said Page had consistently complied with filing requirements for the reports before July 1, 2017
He also said, “In his 27 years serving as Sheriff, his campaign finance reports were timely filed, a fact that has never been questioned by the State Board of Elections or any authority.”
In addition, Gardner said the campaign committee has fully complied with the requirements of N.C. Gen. Stat. § 163-278.35, and that all disclosures prior to July 1, 2017, were filed in paper form.
“No audits or investigations have ever been initiated regarding Sheriff Page’s campaign finances, and the statutory two-year retention period for reports filed prior to July 1, 2017, has long since expired,” he said in the email. “It’s possible that paper copies of some pre-2017 reports may exist, but I cannot confirm that Sheriff Page, Mr. Gunn, or anyone else associated with the Sam Page Campaign for Sheriff has possession of these documents. Moreover, we understand that N.C. Gen. Stat. § 163-278.35 imposes no obligation to maintain or produce such records beyond the statutory period, which has elapsed.”
NCSBE Executive Director Sam Hayes issued a statement Friday afternoon that he will be sending an investigator from the State Board next week to meet with the county elections director to gather additional details on the missing reports.
“I am aware of this situation involving campaign finance reports that are missing from Rockingham County records prior to 2017, he said in the statement. “I have spoken with the Rockingham County elections director, and I am committed to getting to the bottom of what happened here. We understand that reports prior to 2017 are missing from the files of other candidates in addition to Sheriff Page. However, we have no evidence or indication that Sheriff Page or any other county candidate from before 2017 failed to file any required campaign finance disclosure reports.”
He said the current Rockingham County Board of Elections and staff inherited the problem from a prior board and are working diligently with State Board staff to address it.
Carolina Journal reached out to Page for a comment, but did not receive a reply prior to the publication of this article.
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