Money intersects with politics in colorful and confusing ways, and this Durham election cycle is no exception: A graphic spotlighting the seemingly mundane fact that several candidates share the same treasurer has stoked conspiracy theories on social media. The emergence of a mysterious 501(c)(4) that endorsed four candidates prompted those same candidates to commit to rejecting dark money contributions.
Eager for something concrete in the murk, the INDY set out last week to dig into the hard numbers behind Durham’s campaign finance.
We found some initial gaps in the record. City council candidate Shanetta Burris, who is challenging incumbent Mark-Anthony Middleton in Ward 2, had submitted no campaign finance reports during the current election period. And mayoral candidate Anjanée Bell, who is running against incumbent Leonardo Williams, was missing two of four required…
