State Board selects vendor for campaign finance system replacement
The $2.2 million contract is part of a broader modernization effort aimed at campaign reporting, election data systems and public access to political money records.
RALEIGH — The North Carolina State Board of Elections has selected ReFrame Solutions to replace the state’s campaign finance reporting system, a $2.2 million contract that election officials say will modernize how candidates, political committees and the public interact with campaign money records.
The agency announced the vendor selection Thursday. The new platform is intended to replace a system that is more than 20 years old and built for the Microsoft Windows operating system. State elections officials said the current system is not compatible with Mac or Apple systems and lacks modern features for filers, election workers and the public.
The new system is expected to be cloud-based and designed around transparency, security, speed, ease of use, searchability and tracking. Planned features include guided electronic filing, electronic signatures, data imports from campaign and financial software, and a central public portal for searching campaign finance reports.
The contract follows a July 2025 legislative appropriation of $15 million to the State Board for modernization of the State Election Information Management System and the campaign finance reporting system.
Executive Director Sam Hayes said the agency wants a system that is secure and accurate while also easier for filers and the public to use. The agency said the project is also being designed to support a possible shift toward broader electronic filing.
The State Board said its Campaign Finance Reporting System Modernization Committee has recommended that the General Assembly require electronic filing through the new system for all candidates beginning with the 2028 election cycle.
The change would affect a central piece of North Carolina’s campaign disclosure infrastructure. The State Board administers campaign finance reporting requirements and oversees election administration conducted by county boards of elections.
For voters, watchdogs, campaigns and the news media, the system’s usability will help determine how easily political money can be reported, searched and tracked. For candidates and committees, it could change how reports are filed and corrected.
The agency said it will work with ReFrame Solutions on the replacement system following the vendor selection.
Editor 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.
