GOP's nominee Mark Robinson for NC governor says underdog story is 'just like North Carolina herself'
Gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson secured the Republican nomination on Super Tuesday, March 5, and said in a victory speech that his "underdog" story was "just like North Carolina herself."
Warning: Graphic Materials
Republican North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson denied involvement in an alleged pornography scandal that surfaced Thursday, vowing to remain in the race to become the Old North State's next governor.
CNN published a report Thursday afternoon alleging Robinson's previous use of a pornography site, called "Nude Africa," where he allegedly messaged with fellow users regarding peeping on women in locker rooms as a teenager, describing himself as a "black NAZI" and declaring a fondness for transgender pornography.
Just before the report was published, Robinson posted a video to his X account vowing to stay in the race while calling the then-anticipated report "tabloid trash."
"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. Folks, this race right now, our opponents are desperate to shift the focus here from the substantive issues and focus on what you are concerned with to salacious trap, tabloid trash," he said in the X video.
Mark Robinson, lieutenant governor of North Carolina, arrives during a "Get Out The Vote" rally with former President Trump in Greensboro, on March 2, 2024. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
CNN's report alleged that Robinson used a pseudonym on the porn site, "minisoldr," to discuss how he enjoys watching transgender pornography, as well as recounting how he allegedly peeped on women in a locker room as a 14-year-old.
"I came to a spot that was a dead end but had two big vent covers over it! It just so happened it overlooked the showers! I sat there for about an hour and watched as several girls came in and showered," Robinson allegedly wrote on Nude Africa of peeping on women as a teenager.
In another post in 2010, CNN reported Robinson allegedly stated, "I’m a Black Nazi!" while discussing Black Republicans.
The alleged use of the chat forums played out between 2008 and 2012, according to CNN, well before Robinson entered the political arena in 2019, when he announced his run for lieutenant governor.
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Robinson pinned blame on his Democratic opponent, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, for leaking the allegations to the media.
"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 told Fox News Digital.
In comments to CNN, Robinson again denied the report.
"This is not us. These are not our words. And this is not anything that is characteristic of me," Robinson said. "I’m not going to get into the minutia of how somebody manufactured this, these salacious tabloid lies."
Reports mounted early Thursday that Robinson was allegedly facing pressure from Republican allies to drop out of the race after word spread that he was facing a damning news article related to his alleged use of adult websites in the 2000s.
Before the CNN report was published, Robinson’s campaign communications director patently said the reports were false.
"Whomever your sources are here, it is complete fiction," comms director Michael Lonergan told the Carolina Journal earlier Thursday.
Fox News Digital reached out to Robinson on Thursday, but did not immediately receive a reply.
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North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson speaks at the Faith and Freedom Road to Majority conference at the Washington Hilton on June 21, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The Democratic Governors Association (DGA) released a statement following CNN's report, arguing it is the "latest proof that Mark Robinson is unhinged, dangerous, and completely unfit to be governor."
"Now, as many Republicans warn against the damage Robinson would do as governor, it's clear that the stakes have never been higher and we must keep our foot on the gas to defeat him in November," DGA deputy communications director Izzi Levy said.
North Carolina Republican Rep. Richard Hudson told Fox News that the "the allegations are very concerning," but that he is not calling on Robinson to drop out of the race, as he needs to "have the opportunity to explain to the people in North Carolina exactly how these allegations aren't true."
"My hope is that the governor can reassure the people of North Carolina that the allegations aren't true," Hudson said.
Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson speaks at a campaign event at Harrah's Cherokee Center on Aug. 14, 2024, in Asheville, North Carolina. (Grant Baldwin/Getty Images)
North Carolina outlet The Assembly published a separate and lengthy report on Sept. 3 alleging Robinson routinely visited porn shops, viewing materials in a private booth, according to former employees and customers. Robinson’s alleged visits to adult stores unfolded in the 1990s and 2000s, before his transition into the political sphere, according to the report.
Lonergan denied the findings in The Assembly’s report, calling it "complete and total fiction."
"This false and personal attack on my boss is complete fiction," Lonergan told the outlet.
Robinson assumed office as North Carolina lieutenant governor in 2021, becoming the first African American to hold the office. He announced last April he would run for governor.
Robinson went viral in 2018 when he delivered an impassioned speech regarding gun laws during a city council meeting in Greensboro, before he was elected to political office. His speech came in response to local leaders debating whether to cancel a gun show following the Parkland school shooting in Florida that same year.
'I Voted' stickers sit on a table at a polling station.
"I’m a law-abiding citizen who’s never shot anybody," Robinson said at the meeting, which was viewed 200 million times. "Every time we have one of these shootings, nobody wants to put the blame where it goes, which is at the shooter’s feet. You want to put it at my feet. You want to turn around and restrict my right."
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He previously worked as a furniture factory employee in North Carolina and is an Army veteran, before climbing the GOP’s political ladder, including earning endorsements from former President Trump and the NRA.
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