Throughout his campaign and tenure as the state’s lieutenant governor, Robinson has embraced the controversy surrounding his growing list of racially charged, sexist, homophobic, and antisemitic remarks, wearing it as a symbol of pride. However, CNN’s latest report delved into his past online activity, uncovering explicit content that still had the ability to cause outrage.
CNN’s file connects Robinson’s call, email cope with and biographical details to the “minisoldr” persona, where Robinson defined himself as a “Black NAZI!”, praised Hitler, defined Martin Luther King Jr in racially offensive terms, expressed sexual interest in transsexual pornography and defined peeping on ladies in a public shower whilst he became 14.
“Slavery is not bad,” Robinson reportedly wrote. “a few humans want to be slaves. I wish they would bring it [slavery] returned. i might actually purchase some.”
CNN refrained from exposing everything of its findings because a number of it become too worrying to cope with in public, the news enterprise stated.
shortly before the record got here out, Robinson claimed he could stay inside the race. If Robinson did now not drop out before nighttime, he couldn’t drop out; the cut-off date in North Carolina could have surpassed.
knowing how the left has sought the removal of best court justice Clarence Thomas for receiving questionable largesse from billionaires, it changed into feature of Robinson to liken his scenario to Thomas’s “excessive-tech lynching” 33 years ago over allegations of sexual misconduct with Anita Hill. “We’re not going to allow them to try this. we're staying on this race. We’re in it to win it,” Robinson said.
The outspoken candidate, Mark Robinson, was already facing a steep political downfall as resurfaced comments and weak polling pushed both the national Republican Party and Donald Trump to distance themselves from him.
Robinson’s alleged involvement with transgender pornography starkly contradicts his outspoken stance against trans rights. His troubles began in 2021, when past remarks emerged where he labeled education on transgender issues as “child abuse,” called LGBTQ+ content “filth,” and suggested that transgender individuals should be arrested for using restrooms that align with their gender identity.
Robinson’s challenger, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, has capitalized on the situation by airing campaign ads that highlight Robinson’s own inflammatory rhetoric. Stein, in contrast, has focused on a positive vision for the state, reaffirming his commitment to reproductive rights.
At a Greensboro rally alongside Vice President Kamala Harris, Stein emphasized his stance: “As your next governor, I will veto any further restrictions on reproductive freedom.”
Abortion rights are central to both Robinson’s platform and the broader political battle in North Carolina. Robinson’s fervent pro-life stance has been uncompromising and confrontational, yet it seems to be contributing to a larger political problem for Republicans in the state.
In a recently resurfaced video from a 2022 church sermon, Robinson criticized women’s empowerment and birth control. “Instead of focusing on building up your mind and empowerment, why don’t you focus on controlling what’s going on down here,” he said, gesturing toward his crotch. “Get this under control.”
Interestingly, Robinson has admitted to paying for an abortion for his girlfriend, now wife, in the 1980s, something he has expressed regret over. Despite this, his fervent anti-abortion stance has solidified his support among North Carolina’s religious right.
Lorra Parker, a resident of McDowell County, where Republicans outnumber Democrats three to one, attended one of Robinson’s recent speeches. While she holds a range of conservative political views, she said that abortion policy is a defining issue for her as a voter. Even though Trump has shown some wavering on the subject during debates, Parker believes he doesn’t need to be perfect, just better than the alternative.
She applies the same reasoning to Robinson. While reserving judgment amid the recent allegations, she noted, “Honestly, I’d need to hear it from a source other than CNN. If he’s innocent, he should fight to prove it. He has time to do that. But the fact they’re just uncovering this now, after he’s been lieutenant governor for four years, seems a bit suspicious to me.”
Robinson's speeches and social media activity have provided Democrats with ample material to portray him as an extremist in their opposition campaigns.
One ad states, "The choice is obvious. Donald Trump and Mark Robinson stand for a vision rooted in division, violence, and hatred. Robinson, instead of focusing on creating jobs, wages endless culture wars. Just weeks ago, speaking from a church pulpit of all places, he declared, 'some folks need killing.'"
Under fire from all sides, Robinson retreated from the spotlight soon after securing the Republican primary, granting interviews only to staunchly conservative outlets and minimizing public appearances.
However, his plan to rely on Trump's influence and the state's typically conservative tilt began to unravel. A barrage of negative media coverage—ranging from scrutiny of his campaign finances to mismanagement issues with his wife's publicly funded nonprofit, along with his consistently inflammatory statements—has steadily eroded his campaign’s momentum.
Robinson hasn’t led in a poll since June, and even before CNN's revelations, Joe Biden's withdrawal from the race in July threatened to turn what was a close contest into a blowout. According to the latest Emerson College poll, Robinson is trailing Stein by eight points.
In response, Robinson re-emerged a few weeks ago. He cautiously started making appearances in smaller, less scrutinized venues to test messaging that was still fiery, but less likely to backfire—more cayenne than Carolina Reaper in tone.
On September 11, the day after the Harris-Trump debate, Robinson appeared in the back room of Countryside Barbecue in Marion, North Carolina, a deep red part of the state, seeking a friendly audience and a chance to soften his rhetoric while under pressure.
This time, his speech centered on practical issues like gas prices, teacher salaries, and state taxes—policy matters rather than the explosive culture war topics of abortion, guns, and LGBTQ rights that had originally propelled him into the spotlight and secured his nomination.
Still, throughout his remarks, he frequently returned to the media and his Democratic rival, venting about the scrutiny and criticism he’s been facing.
"Josh Stein just wants to talk about everything but the truth," Robinson said. "He’s bringing up some old Facebook post of mine from eight or nine years ago. He only showed about three seconds of it, something about ‘keep your skirt down,’ but didn’t show the full context."
Robinson was referring to the numerous ads running across the state that replay a Facebook video from 2009, in which he stated that abortion "is about killing the child because you weren’t responsible enough to keep your skirt down."
“He cut out the part where I said ‘or keep your pants up,’” Robinson told a conservative audience last week, a point that resonated with them. He claimed the ads were misleading, called his opponent a liar, and challenged the press to cover it. He also demanded a debate, which Stein has been avoiding.
Despite his attempts to present himself more respectfully, hints of Robinson's brashness were still evident.
He spent nearly as much time attacking President Biden and Vice President Harris in the mountain towns of western North Carolina as he did focusing on Stein.
“The same one who was right there with Biden while he was making all these messes was on TV last night saying she’s going to fix everything,” Robinson said about Harris. “She caused these problems, but she can’t solve them. What policy has she ever pushed that would actually address the issues we’re facing right now?”
Robinson has been softening his earlier, strong stance for a complete abortion ban in North Carolina. Earlier this year, he supported a six-week “heartbeat” law but recently suggested that the public should “move on” from the abortion debate.
Speaking to a packed audience of church-going Republicans in Marion, he stated, “Everyone may have different views on this. My stance is clear: regardless of where the law stands, as governor, I will fight to protect every single life in the womb. It doesn’t matter if it’s 12 weeks, six weeks, eight weeks, or 20 weeks—we will advocate for life in this state.”
In a nod to Trump and his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, some members of Robinson’s campaign team wore shirts that read “Felon / Hillbilly.”
These shirts capture the tone of Robinson’s campaign, as he aligns himself closely with Trump’s style and politics. However, even Trump’s team seems to be reaching their limit with him.