Campaign finance requirements govern how much money candidates may receive from individuals and organizations, how often they must report those contributions, and how much individuals, organizations, and political entities may contribute to campaigns.
While campaign finance is not the only factor in electoral outcomes, successful fundraising can provide a candidate with advantages during a campaign. Fundraising can also indicate party momentum.
This article lists top fundraisers in the North Carolina State Senate, overall and by party. It is based on campaign finance reports that officeholders in and candidates for the State Senate submitted to the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE). It includes activity between July 1, 2022, and Dec. 31, 2022.
Top fundraisers in the North Carolina State Senate by party
The top fundraisers in North Carolina State Senate elections are shown below. Individuals are presented with the office that they were on the ballot for in 2022, if applicable.
In the Democratic Party, the top fundraisers in the most recent semiannual reporting period were:
- Mary Wills Bode (District 18) – $2,362,607
- Sydney Batch (District 17) – $2,057,239
- Marcia Morgan (District 7) – $1,905,582
- Val Applewhite (District 19) – $1,645,884
- Rachel Hunt (District 42) – $705,097
In the Republican Party, the top fundraisers in the most recent semiannual reporting period were:
- Michael Lee (District 7) – $1,506,085
- Mark Cavaliero (District 17) – $1,413,971
- E.C. Sykes (District 18) – $1,280,085
- Phil Berger (District 26) – $1,215,512
- Tom McInnis (District 21) – $1,067,211
Fundraising totals
Overall, Democratic officeholders and candidates raised $11.3 million in this period. Republican officeholders and candidates raised $14.1 million. Combined, all State Senate fundraisers in the July 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2022, filing period raised $25.4 million.
The five largest Democratic fundraisers were responsible for 77 percent of all Democratic State Senate fundraising. The five largest Republican fundraisers were responsible for 46 percent of all Republican State Senate fundraising.
The table below provides additional data from the campaign finance reports from the top 10 fundraisers during this period.
| TOP 10 FUNDRAISERS – NORTH CAROLINA STATE SENATE (July 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2022) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Party Affiliation | Raised | Spent |
| Mary Wills Bode | Democratic Party | $2,362,607 | $2,250,268 |
| Sydney Batch | Democratic Party | $2,057,239 | $1,998,843 |
| Marcia Morgan | Democratic Party | $1,905,582 | $1,604,232 |
| Val Applewhite | Democratic Party | $1,645,884 | $1,370,539 |
| Michael Lee | Republican Party | $1,506,085 | $1,246,524 |
| Mark Cavaliero | Republican Party | $1,413,971 | $1,152,900 |
| E.C. Sykes | Republican Party | $1,280,085 | $1,108,233 |
| Phil Berger | Republican Party | $1,215,512 | $1,930,492 |
| Tom McInnis | Republican Party | $1,067,211 | $923,414 |
| Robert Hanig | Republican Party | $933,731 | $615,405 |
Campaign finance reporting periods
The data above are based on campaign finance reports that candidate committees submitted to the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE). Candidate committees represent individuals who have run for state or local office at any point, including past and present officeholders. This article does not include non-candidate committees. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines.
This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Learn more about our work here.
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