SANFORD – A Lee County voter filed a complaint Oct. 9 with the North Carolina State Ethics Commission alleging that state House candidate Charles M. Taylor failed to disclose several real-estate and business interests on required ethics forms.
The complaint says Taylor’s 2026 Statement of Economic Interest omitted property at 2101 Tramway Road and 1516 Wayne Street in Sanford, two houses in Snow Hill and interests in two limited-liability companies. It also alleges that two of the properties should have appeared on a disclosure Taylor filed in 2015 while serving on a state commission.
Taylor’s 2026 form identifies one North Carolina real-estate interest, described only as being in Sanford and Lee County. The form also says he had no interests worth at least $10,000 in a nonpublic company and no for-profit business associations as of Dec. 31, 2025.
Taylor told The Rant and The Assembly that some purchases closed on the final day of 2025 and that he planned to amend the form. Asked about the older properties, he said he would resolve any technical issues with his statement.
The Assembly reported that the Tramway Road property houses a business with electronic gambling machines. State Alcohol Law Enforcement told the outlet it could not determine whether machines it had not examined were legal, and Taylor has not been charged with a crime.
The ethics complaint cites Taylor’s disclosure obligations as a candidate for the General Assembly. A complaint is an allegation, not a finding that the Ethics Act was violated. The commission says complaints and investigative records generally remain confidential unless an exception applies.
Taylor is the Republican nominee in House District 51, which includes Lee County and part of Moore County. The State Board of Elections lists unaffiliated candidate April Montgomery as his opponent in the Nov. 3 general election. The disclosure dispute therefore concerns voters’ evaluation of candidates in an active state legislative race.
The Rant reported that Taylor won the Republican primary in March and is seeking to succeed Rep. John Sauls, who is not running for reelection. No Democratic candidate appears on the general-election ballot.
Sources
- Charles M. Taylor’s 2026 Statement of Economic Interest
- The Assembly report on Taylor’s property and disclosure, Oct. 11; updated Oct. 12
- The Rant report on the ethics complaint, Oct. 12
Photo Credit: Jmturner / Wikimedia Commons, public domain.
Editor’s Note: This article was drafted with the assistance of artificial intelligence and was reviewed and fact-checked by a member of the NC Political News editorial team before publication.