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Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate in a competitive race for governor of North Carolina, is facing new scrutiny in the wake of CNN reporting that he called himself a “black Nazi,” said he wished he could own slaves and made dozens of other disturbing comments on a porn forum called “Nude Africa.” The posts by Robinson, a religious conservative who opposes trans rights, date from 2008 to 2012 and also include comments about abortion and enjoying porn featuring trans women.

Shortly before CNN published the story, Robinson said in a video statement that its allegations were not true.

“Let me reassure you: The things that you will see in that story, those are not the words of Mark Robinson,” Robinson said in a video posted Thursday afternoon on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. He also said he would be staying in the race.

In an interview with CNN, Robinson denied the reporting, describing it as “tabloid trash.” 

The Republican is set to face off against Democrat Josh Stein, the state’s attorney general, in the race to succeed term-limited Gov. Roy Cooper (D). If elected, Robinson would be North Carolina’s first Black governor. 

Robinson had little political experience prior to speaking at a 2018 city council meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina. The city council was considering whether Greensboro should host a gun show in the wake of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, that resulted in 17 deaths, mostly teens. 

At the city council meeting, Robinson railed against the confiscation of firearms from law-abiding citizens, which was not among the topics under discussion. However, the speech went viral, garnering over 3 million views. 

Since then, Robinson has enjoyed a meteoric rise in conservative politics. In 2021, he was elected lieutenant governor of North Carolina. He gave a prime time speech during this year’s Republican National Convention and has been endorsed by President Donald Trump. 

Robinson’s career and recent campaign have been defined by attacks on LGBTQ people, Jewish people and women, particularly Black women. He has an extensive history of incendiary social media posts predating his time in office, calling former First Lady Michelle Obama an “angry anti-American communist Black lady.” He has called LGBTQ people “filth” and denied the Holocaust on multiple occasions. 

Robinson’s comments on the “Nude Africa” forum contradict many of the political positions he has taken. During his campaign for lieutenant governor in 2020, Robinson called for a complete abortion ban. However, in 2010 on “Nude Africa,” Robinson posted that he did not care about a celebrity having an abortion, CNN reported.

“I don’t care. I just wanna see the sex tape!” Robinson wrote.

During his gubernatorial campaign, Robinson has been particularly focused on transgender people. Earlier this year, he said trans women should be arrested for using the women’s bathroom, as first reported in The Washington Post. 

But on “Nude Africa,” Robinson described his affinity for watching pornography featuring trans women. 

“That’s fucking hot! It takes the man out while leaving the man in!” Robinson wrote. “And yeah I’m a ‘perv’ too!”

Earlier this year, President Donald Trump described Robinson as “better than Martin Luther King” and “Martin Luther King on steroids.” In a “Nude Africa” post, Robinson attacked the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial in Washington, D.C., CNN reported. 

“Get that fucking commie bastard off the National Mall!,” Robinson wrote. He also described King as a “huckster” and “worse than a maggot” in other posts. 
Recent polls have shown Robinson trailing Stein and a close presidential race in North Carolina, which last went for a Democratic presidential candidate in 2008. Ballots are set to be sent out to military and overseas voters on Friday, according to the State Board of Elections.

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