Political action committees associated with four major tobacco companies gave about $28,000 since 2000 to 11 of the 17 Democrats who voted against the smoking ban.
As Dome noted earlier, they were the crossovers who went against party line, helping defeat the bill.
Lorillard, R.J. Reynolds, Standard Commercial Tobacco, Philip Morris and its parent company Altria gave mostly small donations of $250, $500 or $1,000 through their PACs, typical of their contributions to other legislators.
The biggest recipient was Rep. Nelson Cole of Reidsville, who got $8,750 between 2000 and 2006. Rep. James Crawford of Oxford received $5,500 during that same time period.
Both represent tobacco-growing areas in North Carolina.
Reps. R. Van Braxton, Walter Church, Mary McAllister, Timothy Spear and Edith Warren were not listed on campaign finance reports filed by the tobacco companies' PACs.
Among the Republicans who voted for the bill, Rep. Julia Howard received $4,200 and Rep. Jeff Barnhart received $2,250.
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