AP Photo/Chris Carlson
Top staff for NC Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s gubernatorial campaign have resigned, it was announced Sunday, amid a scandal that has rocked the campaign over the last week.
Last week CNN broke the news that the Republican candidate had posted multiple times over a decade ago on a pornographic website called Nude Africa, where he referred to himself as a “Black Nazi” and voiced support for bringing back slavery. He also related graphic sexual stories on the forum about spying on women in locker rooms.
Robinson and his campaign have denied the report, claiming that the account cited by CNN does not belong to Robinson. The Democratic gubernatorial nominee attorney general Josh Stein has since expanded his lead over Robinson.
On Sunday, the campaign issued a statement revealing the campaign manager, finance director, deputy campaign manager, and senior adviser have all resigned, and quoting Robinson as stating, “these team members who have made the difficult choice to step away from the campaign, and I wish them well in their future endeavors.”
Robinson reiterated his pledge to
“My campaign will continue to focus on the substantive issues at stake in this election: building an economy that grows from Murphy to Manteo; cutting taxes and eliminating unnecessary red-tape; removing politics out of our classrooms; and cracking down on violent crime and dangerous drugs,” Robinson said in the statement.
He added, “Polls have consistently underestimated Republican support in North Carolina for several cycles now and with a large portion of the electorate still undecided as we continue to ramp up our efforts across the state, I am confident our campaign remains in a strong position to make our case to the voters and win on November 5.”