In North Carolina, Gov. Roy Cooper is the number three fundraiser in state politics in the 2022 election cycle so far. According to the most recent campaign finance reports made to the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE), the governor received $2,631,856 in total contributions and spent $874,238 between Jan. 1, 2021 and July 29, 2022. Cooper’s current term ends in 2025.
Gov. Cooper is a member of the Democratic Party and first assumed office in 2017.
Gov. Cooper’s reported campaign finance activity, by quarter (2017-2022)
Source: Transparency USA
Contributions to Gov. Cooper
Of the $2.6 million already reported in the 2022 election cycle, 12.5 percent came from the top 10 donors.
Top Donors to Gov. Cooper (1/1/2021 – 7/29/22)
| Rank | Total Amount | Donor Name | Donor Type |
| 1. | $180,885.20 | NC Democratic Leadership Committee “Ncdlc” | ENTITY |
| 2. | $82,964.66 | Gmmb Inc | ENTITY |
| 3. | $11,475.00 | Catherine Morris | INDIVIDUAL |
| 4. | $11,200.00 | C Sherwin Suddreth | INDIVIDUAL |
| 5. | $10,500.00 | William R Hazzard | INDIVIDUAL |
| 6. | $8,400.00 | Ilene C Siegler | INDIVIDUAL |
| 7. | $6,600.00 | Ima Cary Nailling | INDIVIDUAL |
| 8. | $6,100.00 | C Ralph Hodge | INDIVIDUAL |
| 9. | $6,100.00 | Mack B Pearsall Jr | INDIVIDUAL |
| 10. | $5,700.00 | Jeanette W Hyde | INDIVIDUAL |
Expenditures by Gov. Cooper
On the expenditures side, Gov. Cooper reported $874,238, with 79.6 percent of all spending going to the 10 payees topping the list.
Top Expenditures by Gov. Cooper (1/1/2021 – 7/29/2022)
| Rank | Total Amount | Payee Name | Payee Type |
| 1. | $266,621.96 | Nexus Strategies Inc | ENTITY |
| 2. | $202,232.21 | RWT Production LLC | ENTITY |
| 3. | $68,989.42 | Battleaxe Digital LLC | ENTITY |
| 4. | $33,415.35 | Vantiv LLC | ENTITY |
| 5. | $32,364.15 | Mariah Morgan | ENTITY |
| 6. | $26,575.00 | Windward Strategies Inc | ENTITY |
| 7. | $20,908.32 | North Carolina Department of Transportation | ENTITY |
| 8. | $17,528.96 | Act Blue | ENTITY |
| 9. | $14,998.28 | United States Postal Service | ENTITY |
| 10. | $12,541.66 | ADP as Depository for Payroll Taxes | ENTITY |
How Gov. Cooper’s fundraising compares to other governors
Among elected officials holding the same level of state office, fundraising varies widely. A number of factors, including whether an incumbent officeholder is running for reelection, influence donor activity. Here is how fundraising by North Carolina Gov. Cooper compares to the 10 other governors with campaign finance data available from Transparency USA in 2022:
Fundraising reported by 11 U.S. governors in the 2022 election cycle
The data above are based on campaign finance reports that active North Carolina PACs submitted to the NCSBE. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines. State or federal law may require filers to submit additional reports.
| Name of Report | Reporting Period | Deadline |
| Q1 Plus | 1/1/22 – 4/30/22 | 5/10/2022 |
| Q2 Plus | 5/1/22 – 6/30/22 | 6/12/2022 |
| Semiannual | 1/1/22- 6/30/22 | 7/29/2022 |
| Q3 Plus | 7/1/22 – 10/22/22 | 11/1/2022 |
| Q4 | 10/23/2022 – 12/31/22 | 1/11/2023 |
| Jan Semiannual | 1/1/22 – 12/31/22 | 1/27/2023 |
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.