North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson is getting badly drubbed in the polls in his bid for governor of the Tar Heel State. The Republican nominee’s paltry polling follows revelations that he called himself a "Black Nazi,” said that "slavery is not bad," declared that civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. was "worse than a maggot," and called himself a "perv," among other disturbing and sexually explicit comments Robinson posted on a porn website forum. A number of polls have Robinson losing to Democratic nominee Josh Stein by double digits, a massive margin in a state that is considered a toss-up at the presidential level. In fact, Robinson is doing so badly that GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump tried to pull an "I don't know her" on the campaign trail on Monday and refused to say whether North Carolinians should still support Robinson. “I’m not familiar with the state of the race right now. I haven’t seen it,” Trump said upon leaving an event in North Carolina, where he defended his rhetoric attacking Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel working to help local residents dig out and rebuild after Hurricane Helene decimated large swaths of the western portion of the state. FEMA workers have faced violent threats after Trump and his supporters spread misinformation about their response. https://t.co/yfuvWhuHHi pic.twitter.com/ZbVBO9sPNf— Acyn (@Acyn) October 21, 2024 That marked lack of enthusiasm is an about-face for Trump, who previously backed Robinson’s bid and embraced him at campaign rallies in the state. In March, Trump even called the lieutenant governor “Martin Luther King on steroids.” “I think you’re better than Martin Luther King,” Trump told Robinson on stage at an event in March. “I think you are Martin Luther King times two.” With Robinson's bid looking dead on arrival, here's a look at North Carolina's likely next governor, Josh Stein. Stein is currently North Carolina's attorney general In 2016, Stein—then a North Carolina state senator—announced a bid to be the state’s top law enforcement officer. He won the election by less than 1 point, and narrowly won reelection again four years later. In his role as attorney general, Stein helped eliminate the backlog of untested rape kits, which has helped solve a number of cold cases in the state. Stein also successfully won a number of major settlements for the state. In December, he announced that the e-cigarette manufacturer Juul would pay the state $48 million after Stein sued the company for illegally advertising to minors. In 2021, Stein won a $1 billion settlement with Duke Energy that forced the company to pay for coal ash cleanup in the state, rather than force North Carolina taxpayers to foot the bill. Stein, along with attorneys general in a handful of other states, also won a settlement in 2019 from five drug companies they accused of playing a role in the country's opioid crisis. North Carolina received $1.5 billion from the settlement, which the state is using to fund treatment and recovery programs for those suffering from opioid addiction. Stein supports reproductive freedom Like current North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, Stein has vowed to veto any abortion bans passed by North Carolina's heavily gerrymandered GOP state Legislative majority. After the Republican-controlled Legislature in March overrode Cooper’s veto of the 12-week abortion ban Republicans passed, Stein said he would not enforce provisions within the law that he believed are unconstitutional. In July 2023, a federal judge allowed the law to take effect, ruling against a lawsuit filed by abortion providers in the state. "I support women’s reproductive freedoms," Stein said ahead of the judges ruling. "After a thorough review of the case in Planned Parenthood v. Stein, I have concluded that many of the provisions in North Carolina’s anti-abortion law are unconstitutional. My office will not defend those parts of the law." He comes from a family of activists Stein’s father, Adam Stein, was a prominent civil rights attorney in North Carolina who was involved in a case that ultimately led the United States Supreme Court to order the desegregation of Charlotte's schools. Stein spoke about his father during his May announcement that he was running for governor. “I learned from a young age to fight for what’s right,” Stein wrote in a Facebook post. “My dad, Adam Stein, helped found the state’s first integrated law firm. His effort to create a state rooted in equality and prosperity inspired me to become a public servant. I’ve fought for North Carolina as a state senator and as Attorney General — and now I’m running for Governor to create a North Carolina that creates opportunities for all of us.” His election would be historic for North Carolina Stein is Jewish. If elected, he would be the first Jewish governor of the Tar Heel State. As it stands, Stein is currently the first Jewish person elected to a statewide office in North Carolina. “I’m hopeful that supporting and electing Josh Stein is an indication of acceptance by many of the Jewish community in North Carolina,” Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer told the Jerusalem Post. Volunteer to reach young voters and prepare them to get out to the polls to vote for Democrats! You can text, call, or post on social media. It's the final push and we need your help!
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