Almost All of Mark Robinson’s Campaign Staff Quit After ‘Black Nazi,’ ‘Perv’ Report

On a Thursday rocked with bizarre political sex scandals, one in particular was both incredibly disturbing and somehow unsurprising. CNN unearthed a trove of past comments from Mark Robinson, the controversial Republican nominee for governor and current lieutenant governor of North Carolina, on a porn forum called “Nude Africa.” Robinson’s apparent history on the forum spans from 2008 to around 2012, and at different points, he called himself a “black Nazi,” advocated for the return of slavery, bragged about enjoying transgender porn and “peeping” on women, and, unfortunately, so much more. Robinson has denied that the account in question is his, but tellingly, the comments that CNN linked with him were deleted shortly after the outlet’s report came out.

In light of these very un-family values revelations, some senior Republicans in the state, as well as Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, allegedly want Robinson out of the race. And it seems most of the Robinson’s own campaign staff wanted out too: As of early Monday, he appears to be down to three staffers—two campaign spokespeople and a bodyguard, per North Carolina outlet WUNC. 

Over the weekend, Robinson’s campaign announced the departures of four senior campaign staffers: a senior adviser, his campaign manager and deputy campaign manager, and his finance director. Axios reports that Robinson’s two political directors and director of operations also resigned. One Republican strategist in North Carolina told the outlet on Monday that the staffing overhaul “doesn’t matter because the campaign was already over.”

But Robinson’s (very small) camp is trying to reassure us all that everything’s just fine. In a press release, he thanked his departing staffers for their efforts, and suggested that contrary to polls and the appraisals of political strategists, his race is still winnable: “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,” Robinson said. 

On Monday, Robinson also denied that his campaign had made new hires, after noted right-wing troll Jack Burman on Sunday night claimed to be Robinson’s new campaign manager. “Online rumors of new hires to our campaign are just that—rumors. We look forward to announcing additional staff roles soon,” Robinson wrote in a tweet. 

In other words, things seem to be going swimmingly for Robinson’s campaign. Famously, all successful political campaigns have total staffing overhauls just weeks out from Election Day. 

Even before last week, Robinson’s campaign had been plagued with controversy—and that’s putting it lightly. He’s openly questioned the Holocaust and, while running as an anti-abortion Republican, disclosed that he once paid for his wife’s abortion. Earlier this month, a lengthy report detailed that, in the 1990s, Robinson frequented a local porn shop and masturbated in a private booth almost every night. 

In addition to writing on the Nude Africa forum in 2012 that he would “take Hitler over any of the shit that’s in Washington right now” and advocating for slavery, Robinson also wrote highly explicit (if seemingly exaggerated) posts about enjoying golden showers and cheating on his wife with her sister. The same day CNN’s report came out, Politico reported that a leak showed Robinson’s email among those registered on Ashley Madison, the notorious website for married people seeking out affairs.

Robinson’s jarring digital history is in fairly sharp contrast with his public statements and aggressively anti-sex positions: In 2022, HuffPost reported that Robinson once said that instead of birth control, young people need to “get this under control,” waving at his crotch. In 2019, he slut-shamed abortion patients, who, again, include his wife: “Abortion in this country is not about protecting the lives of mothers. It’s about killing the child because you weren’t responsible enough to keep your skirt down.”

Even before the events of last week, Robinson’s opponent, Democrat Josh Stein, was in the lead by as many as 14 points—while Trump maintains a narrow edge over Harris in most polls of North Carolina voters. Still, Robinson maintains that he and his three staffers (again, one of whom is a bodyguard) can still pull this thing off. I sincerely look forward to watching them try.