The campaign for outgoing North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson has been fined $35,066 for campaign finance violations tied to his successful 2020 campaign for office.
The violations took place between the dates of July 1, 2019, and Dec. 31, 2020, according to a reached on Dec. 6 between his 2020 campaign and the North Carolina state Board of Elections.
A completed in September detailed a wide array of violations, including 133 anonymous donations, three contributions over the legal limit of $5,400 per person, and five contributions from national political committees not registered in North Carolina.
The audit also found Robinson illegally spent campaign funds on personal medical expenses, including $159 at Ironwood Family Medicine, $77.52 at Walmart, and $27 for "aggregated non-media."
He also made illegal cash withdrawals totaling $247.50 in November and December 2019, including a $160 withdrawal from SECU using a campaign debit card on Dec. 2, 2019.
In , Robinson had characterized problems in his campaign finance reports as "clerical errors." The audit did find "various mathematical errors" in all of the reviewed reports, and found of the 387 expenditures reviewed, 34% had incomplete or missing purposes.
In three cases, the state audit found Robinson's campaign recorded contributions from businesses 鈥� which are prohibited in North Carolina 鈥� that should have been recorded as gifts from business owners in their individual capacity.
The audit also confirmed that the campaign correctly reimbursed Robinson's wife $4,500 for 310 campaign T-shirts, though it was missing a proper description in the report.
As part of the settlement, the Robinson committee will not have to cover the costs of the state investigation or file amended campaign finance reports.
The audit was sparked by a complaint filed in February 2021 by longtime North Carolina government watchdog Bob Hall. In a statement to media outlets, Hall said he learned of the settlement from the state Board of Elections on Dec. 17.
"It's unfortunate it took so many years to finish this investigation," Hall said in the statement. "The public should have known about the scope of Robinson's illegal activity in the 2020 campaign well before the 2024 election ended."
Hall also said it was unfortunate Robinson's campaign would not have to cover the costs of the investigation, writing that the state Board of Elections was "woefully understaffed and underfinanced."
