Bob Crumley (R)
RALEIGH, N.C. (Legal Newsline)- The Republican candidate for North Carolina attorney general has taken his name and images out of ads for his law firm after state elections officials said the commercials could constitute illegal campaign contributions.
Republican attorney Bob Crumley is running against Democratic Attorney General Roy Cooper, who is seeking a third, four-year term.
The (Greensboro, N.C.) News Record reported Monday that Crumley decided to jettison the ads to avert a potentially costly legal battle with the state.
"I have bigger fish to fry right now," Crumley was quoted by the newspaper as saying. "I think the position the (state) board of elections is taking is designed to affect a particular candidate and that candidate is me."
His law firm, Crumley and Associates, has long run ads in markets where it has offices, the newspaper reported.
The state Democratic Party had said in a complaint to elections officials that at least one ad ran by Crumley should have been counted as a campaign expenditure and therefore disclosed in campaign finance reports.
The TV spot did not mention it was a solicitation for a law firm, and contained phrases such as, "People helping people, that's part of our North Carolina heritage. For Bob Crumley, it's been his life."
From Legal Newsline: Reach reporter Chris Rizo at chrisrizo@legalnewsline.com.