Former representative ends campaign for NC House after health issues, missing finance documents

Former state Rep. Rodney Moore’s return to politics started with a state-mandated prohibition on accepting campaign contributions.

Moore was making his first bid for General Assembly since he was convicted of a felony charge in an election finance case in 2019. The race, for District 112 in east Mecklenburg, put him up against three Democratic primary challengers.

On Saturday, Moore announced on Twitter he was going to “withdraw my candidacy” for House District 112. With early voting starting Thursday, he’ll still appear on ballots.

“My health and my family are my top priorities,” Moore said in his tweet. “Thanks to those of you who have been supportive of my efforts.”

Until earlier this month, he was barred by the state from accepting campaign contributions in the new race. Records from the State Board of Elections show that Moore didn’t file a quarterly finance report from 2018 until April 7. Now that it’s filed, he’s able to accept contributions, but he still owes the state several other required finance documents.

Moore said last week his campaign was “kind of behind the eight ball.”

Moore also hasn’t filed a Statement of Economic Interest with the state Board of Ethics. The form is more than a month past due, and not filling it out carries a $250 fine. Every other candidate in the race — former state Rep. Tricia Cotham, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools employee Yolanda Holmes and carpenter Jay Holman — have filed the form.

Moore planned to correct ongoing finance problems

Moore said in an interview with The Charlotte Observer he’s dealt with health problems the previous few weeks and that his campaign has taken a back seat during that time. Prior to his Saturday announcement, he planned to complete the ethics form and hoped to set a meeting with elections officials to get his finance documents sorted out.

On social media, Moore complained about not being able to accept campaign contributions.

“Doesn’t pass the smell test,” he wrote on Twitter in early April. “But I will continue the fight.”

Speaking with the Observer, Moore said part of the problem was he didn’t make his campaign committee inactive when he left politics. Moore said he wasn’t aware that he had to file as many documents as the state requires.

“I would have cleared it up,” he said.

Moore was indicted in March 2019 on nine felony counts involving false campaign finance reports, the Observer previously reported, and pleaded guilty later that year to a single count of making felony false statements under oath. Investigators found in 2019 he didn’t report more than $140,000 of campaign contributions and expenditures.

He received a suspended sentence and, speaking to the Observer, apologized and said he takes responsibility for what happened.

He planned to campaign on his experience as a legislator and working across the aisle to promote business growth and support teachers.

“I know people are going to be critical … but at the same time you have to be fair,” he said. “Nobody can attack my record on the policies that I introduced or tried to help implement.”

This story was originally published April 25, 2022 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Former representative ends campaign for NC House after health issues, missing finance documents."

Will Wright

The Charlotte Observer

Will Wright covers politics in Charlotte and North Carolina. He previously covered eastern Kentucky for the Lexington Herald-Leader, and worked as a reporting fellow at The New York Times.