By Andie Foley
andie.foley@salisburypost.com

Second quarter campaign finance reports were due July 11 for Rowan County’s commissioner candidates, leaving one Republican incumbent facing the potential for fines.

Commissioner Judy Klusman had yet to turn in her forms as of noon on Friday, July 27.

According to elections director Nancy Evans, this puts her at risk of a fine of $50 per day up to $500.

Klusman said that she expected to turn in the reports by close of business Friday evening. The delay came from a mix of issues, she said: both technical and personal.

Klusman reported that her total expenditures for this quarter reached $9,060.70. She received $2,574 in contributions and loaned $2,500 to her own campaign.

These expenditures, combined with last quarter’s $3,052.13, would place Klusman at the top of the spending list for this year’s Republican candidates.

Incumbent Greg Edds’ $11,058.33 spent since January follows her total of $12,112.83 by just over $1,000.

On his filed report, Edds reported $150 in contributions, with $100 coming from Charles Patton.

Since April 21, his campaign committee spent $1,000: $500 to Ford Broadcasting for radio ads and $500 to the Rowan County GOP.

Challenging Commissioner Craig Pierce followed Edds with $7,999.90 in operating expenses since January.

His campaign spent $3,238.08 since late April in loan repayments to the former candidate.

Similarly, challenger Jim Sides’ spent $7,404.28 since January. Second quarter expenses included $936 for radio ads on Memories 1280 and $2,695.72 on loan repayments to Sides.

Incumbent Jim Greene and challenging candidate Michael Julian spent the least since January: Greene with $4,486.48 and Julian with $3,238.56.

Greene spent $2,188 since April 21, with $300.33 to Diversified Graphics Inc. for advertising design and printed handout cards.

The remaining $1,888.15 went to the Salisbury Post for political advertising.

Greene reported $900 in contributions in the second quarter, including $500 from John M. Fisher, $100 from Javis M. Arey, $100 from Raymond D. Coltrain and $200 from Victor Wallace.

Julian spent just $438.09 additional before closing his campaign: $14 in a monthly fee to Wells Fargo, $29 in website fees, $374.50 for signage from Chapman Custom Signs and $10.59 to Julian for repayment for campaign expenses.

Incumbents Edds, Klusman and Greene won the Republican primary in May. They will face Democratic candidates Veleria Levy and Latasha Wilks on the November ballot, who ran unopposed during the primary.