North Carolina House Candidate Taylor Sues PAC Over Gambling Ad
Sanford councilor Charles Taylor is suing the Sandhills Citizens Alliance for defamation after the PAC tied his property to an unlicensed 22-machine game room ahead of Tuesday's election.
Charles Taylor, a Republican Sanford city councilor seeking a North Carolina House seat, has filed a defamation lawsuit against a political action committee that accused him of links to an illegal gambling operation.
Casino.org News reported in October that Taylor owns a small former retail property at 2101 Tramway Rd. in Sanford, bought for $60,000 in December 2025, that has since been converted into an unlicensed game room housing 22 slot machines. A sign on the door, featuring an illustration of a handgun, warns: "THERE IS NOTHING HERE WORTH DYING FOR."
Taylor has said he is the building's landlord and failed to disclose the purchase on his state election filing because the deal closed "on the final day of the year" in 2025.
He is running against independent candidate April Montgomery to succeed longtime Republican John Sauls, who is retiring from House District 41. Taylor secured the Republican nomination by defeating Lee County school board chair Sherry Lynn Womack.
The Sandhills Citizens Alliance has aired a 30-second television commercial and sent mailers referencing the gambling allegations. The ad's voiceover states: "An investigation found gambling in a building owned by Charles Taylor. Out front, a warning sign with a gun aimed at customers."
Taylor's lawsuit, which seeks $25,000 plus punitive damages, argues the ad falsely implies he personally operates an illegal business. His complaint states that the game room was already leased to a tenant before he purchased the property and that he merely honoured the existing arrangement.
"Taylor owns the real property, but not the tenant's business or equipment. He does not own, manage, or operate that business or participate in its day-to-day operations," the complaint says.
Campaign finance records reviewed by Casino.org News show the Sandhills Citizens Alliance raised $350,000 described as coming from "outside sources of income." North Carolina Families First contributed $200,000, North Carolina Families First for Prosperity gave $100,000, and a separate entity, North Carolina Families First, gave $50,000. The PAC's only individual donor was David Knight of Knight Consulting Group, who gave $1,000.
Despite the attack campaign, Taylor is widely expected to win the House District 51 seat, which has been held by Sauls since 2017 and is considered a Republican stronghold in Lee County.
The race, and Taylor's lawsuit against the Sandhills Citizens Alliance, now intersects with North Carolina's broader struggle to police unlicensed game rooms, which continue to operate in commercial storefronts despite state restrictions on slot-style gambling machines outside tribal and licensed venues.