Somehow, someway, the North Carolina GOP’s nominee for governor, Mark Robinson, is facing yet another slew of damning allegations, frustrating Republicans in the state and even spurring calls for him to drop out of the race.
The allegations, ultimately detailed in a thorough CNN investigation, began trickling onto social media Thursday morning amid reporting that those in Robinson and Donald Trump’s orbit wanted to see him out of the race.
By the time CNN had published its report, a compilation of sexually explicit and racist comments that Robinson allegedly posted on a porn site between 2008 to 2012, it was clear Republicans in the state could see there would be blowback.
“The governor’s race is over,” one veteran Republican strategist in North Carolina told NOTUS following the news. “The real question is going to be if this impacts the other Republicans on the ballot. Trump endorsed the guy. He’s going to have to answer for all this.”
Laurie Buckhout, the Republican House candidate for North Carolina’s 1st District, appeared to delete social media posts, including ones that showed her and Robinson together at campaign events.
“Not good,” Rep. Patrick McHenry told reporters about the news.
“The allegations involving Lt. Gov. Robinson in this new report are concerning,” National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Richard Hudson said in a statement. “I am hoping Mark can reassure North Carolinians that each of these specific allegations are not true.”
Before CNN had even published its investigation, Robinson released a straight-to-camera video on his X account denying what was to come and confirming he would stay in the race.
The CNN report details Robinson posting comments about secretly watching girls shower, referring to himself as a “perv” and saying of Martin Luther King Jr., “If I was in the KKK, I would have called him Martin Lucifer Koon!”
Per CNN, Robinson also declared himself a “black NAZI!” and showed support for slavery.
“I wish they would bring it back,” CNN reported that Robinson posted. “I would certainly buy a few.”
Not long after CNN’s investigation was published, Politico reported that a personal email address belonging to Robinson was also registered on Ashley Madison, a website for married folks wanting to find an affair.
“This is not us,” Robinson told CNN, denying the allegations. “These are not our words. And this is not anything that is characteristic of me.” Robinson has claimed to be converted to Christianity, an identity he’s emphasized to great effect during his political career.
The news has sparked more worrisome Republicans to air their concerns about Robinson, some of whom previously waved off concerns about the GOP slate of candidates being too extreme.
With only hours before the 11:59 p.m. deadline for candidates to resign, the party is against the clock. Their candidate is drowning in controversy, but Robinson has declared that he will stay in the race. (This close to the election, logistics would be tough anyway. Should Robinson drop out before midnight, the party’s executive committee could select a candidate to replace him for the general election. But the state’s absentee ballots have already been printed, and Robinson’s name is on them. They’ll be shipped out in the morning after a lengthy delay.)
Democrats in the state have been more or less resting easy in the governor’s race. They long ago predicted Robinson would be a liability for Republicans in the general elections and have enjoyed significant leads in the polls.
Democrats have put down $16.2 million in ad reservations from now through Election Day, while Republicans lag with only $1 million in reserved advertising, AdImpact reported this month.
Robinson has been so behind that at least one Democratic strategist says this latest report won’t move the needle much more than it’s already gone.
“This is going to ever-so-slightly move the race more in favor of Josh Stein,” Doug Wilson, a veteran Democratic strategist in North Carolina, told NOTUS. “What’s going to happen now is you will see an uptick in suburban women, young voters and LGBTQ voters indicating support for Democrats.”
The real danger for Republicans is whether the blowback will hit other Republican candidates in the state. Democrats in the state are certainly willing to make that so.
“This is the same man that Republican leaders have enthusiastically endorsed and supported to be governor for a year and a half,” North Carolina House Democratic Leader Robert Reives posted on X. “They knew who he was then and it is too late to walk back that support now.”
Rep. Jeff Jackson, the Democratic nominee for attorney general, took the opportunity to tie his Republican opponent, Rep. Dan Bishop, to Robinson.
In a post on X, Jackson listed examples of Bishop praising Robinson including a time Bishop referred to him as “the most formidable candidate I’ve ever seen.”
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Calen Razor is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow. Ben T.N. Mause is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.