CNN story claims NC Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson called himself 'black NAZI,' condoned slavery

RALEIGH - Mark Robinson, Republican candidate for North Carolina governor, said in an X (formerly Twitter) video Sept. 19, that he was a victim of “high-tech lynching” by Josh Stein, in response to CNN publishing an article exposing his online footprint.

Robinson, a conservative known for his extreme, far-right views, said Stein, North Carolina Attorney General and Robinson's Democratic opponent in the gubernatorial race, was telling lies in "a story leaked by him to CNN."

The CNN story, which published Thursday afternoon, has allegedly caused Trump campaign staffers to encourage Robinson to drop out, according to sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity in reporting from the Carolina Journal.

Trump aides repeatedly declined to say whether Robinson would withdraw from the race, or whether Trump would ask him to, when asked by USA TODAY.

Mike Lonergan, a spokesperson for the Robinson campaign, called the sources in the Carolina Journal story "complete fiction," in a text message response Sept. 19 to the Wilmington StarNews and Asheville Citizen Times. After the CNN story broke, the campaign slammed Stein.

"Everything Josh Stein the Democrats say about Mark Robinson is either an outright lie or twisted so far out of context it might as well be," Lonergan wrote in an email to the press.

Robinson took to X to deny the CNN article claims and assure voters he is staying in the race.

"Let me reassure you, the things that you will see in that story, those are not the words of Mark Robinson. You know my words; you know my character, and you know that I have been completely transparent in this race and before."

The CNN article outlined comments made my Robinson, under the internet username "minisoldr," which they connected to him, about being a "perv," staring into a woman's gym shower room, liking transgender porn, calling himself a "black NAZI!" condoning slavery, among other things. The comments were made before Robinson's entrance into the political sphere, and he denied them when interviewed by CNN, the article states.

In response to the news, Scott Lassiter, a Wake County Republican candidate running for North Carolina Senate, called for Robinson to step down in a statement posted on X.

"As a proud Republican, I stand for hard work, fiscal responsibility, and liberty. But no one should feel obligated to support a candidate solely due to party affiliation," he wrote. "Wrong is still wrong, and if the recent allegations against Robinson are true, combined with his previous public rhetoric, I believe it's time for him to step aside. North Carolinians deserve a viable choice in this election."

Robinson, NC's lieutenant governor, has been slammed by Stein on multiple counts for derogatory statements Robinson has made about the LGBTQ+ community, on a push for severe abortion restrictions and other topics.

“North Carolinians already know Mark Robinson is completely unfit to be Governor. Josh remains focused on winning this campaign so that together we can build a safer, stronger North Carolina for everyone," Stein's campaign said in a news statement following the CNN story.

Robinson, although behind in several recent polls, has been making campaign stops around the state recently. He visited Burnsville in Yancey County last weekend where he condemned Kamala Harris and said voters have a clear choice in November.

"What this election boils down to is just simple right and wrong," Robinson said to the crowd.

As the Robinson campaign deals with the aftermath of the CNN story, Stein's campaign was busy collecting endorsements from Republicans. On Sept. 19, his team launched "Republicans for Stein," which has support from former Henderson County State Rep. Chuck McGrady, among a list of more than 50 so far.

North Carolinians will begin voting as soon as Sep. 20 when absentee ballots are sent to military and overseas voters. And on Oct. 17, when early in-person voting begins in the state.

What happens if Robinson steps down?

The deadline for a candidate to withdraw in North Carolina is 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 19, the day before mail-in absentee ballots are scheduled to be distributed to military and overseas voters, according to the North Carolina State Board of Elections.

If Robinson does drop out, the Republican Party state executive committee would select a replacement, according to Chris Cooper, a professor of political science and public affairs at Western Carolina University and the author of the forthcoming book "Anatomy of a Purple State: A North Carolina Politics Primer."

But it’s unlikely the new candidate’s name would appear on the ballot, since mail-in military and overseas ballots are set to go out Sept. 20 and all other mail-in ballot requests are scheduled to be sent Sept. 24.

A new candidate would still reap any Robinson votes, even without their name on the ballot.

“If the state executive party gets together and says, ‘John Smith is our guy,’ then all the Mark Robinson votes go to John Smith,” Cooper said. “And if the Mark Robinson box gets the most votes, John Smith takes office.”

But it’s unclear who could step in at this point.

Someone like State Treasurer Dale Folwell, Cooper said, seems like a natural replacement, but since he ran in this year's Republican primary for governor, he is ineligible, according to state law.

“The other problem is, it can’t be somebody who’s already running for another office,” Cooper said. “It has to be somebody who is a politician with a statewide name and is currently looking for work.”

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

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Sarah Gleason is the NC Elections Fellow in Raleigh for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at [email protected].

Buncombe County Watchdog Reporter Jacob Biba's reporting contributed to this story.

Madison County Reporter Johnny Casey's reporting contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Mark Robinson rebuts CNN story says he's victim of 'high-tech lynchin'