Several senior staff members in North Carolina Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson’s gubernatorial campaign have resigned following the fallout from a CNN report revealing troubling past posts attributed to Robinson on a pornography website’s message board over a decade ago.
In a news release on Sunday, the campaign announced that senior adviser Conrad Pogorzelski III, campaign manager Chris Rodriguez, the finance director, and the deputy campaign manager had left their positions. The campaign indicated that information regarding new staff would be provided soon.
Robinson expressed appreciation for the contributions of those who stepped down, wishing them well in their future paths.
Pogorzelski, who played a key role in Robinson’s 2020 election as lieutenant governor and subsequently served as his chief of staff, confirmed that additional campaign staff, including the deputy finance director and two political directors, also departed. He stated that he and other team members “have left of our own accord.”
The CNN report uncovered Robinson’s posts where he controversially referred to himself as a “black NAZI,” expressed enjoyment of transgender pornography, and made remarks favoring Adolf Hitler over then-President Barack Obama, while discrediting Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Robinson has denied the authenticity of the posts and asserted that he would not be driven out of the race by what he terms “salacious tabloid lies.” During a campaign event in Fayetteville on Saturday, he chose not to directly address the controversy.
Despite trailing in polls against Democratic nominee Josh Stein, the state’s attorney general, Robinson remains optimistic about his chances in the upcoming November election. He argued that polls have traditionally underestimated Republican support and highlighted that a substantial portion of voters remain undecided.
Stein labeled Robinson as “utterly unqualified” to lead North Carolina during an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union,” vowing to do everything possible to prevent his election.
In a related political atmosphere, billboards linking Trump to Robinson have emerged, alongside campaign ads from Vice President Kamala Harris spotlighting Robinson’s abortion stance, which includes supporting a state-wide ban without exceptions.
On Sunday, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham from South Carolina remarked on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Robinson deserves an opportunity to defend himself against the allegations. He commented that if the accusations hold true, Robinson would be “unfit to serve,” but if not, he might have a significant libel case at hand.