ICYMI: All Eyes On #NCGOV | Josh Stein for NC

MSNBC: NC Attorney General reveals plan to end GOP supermajority in 2024 and speaks to gun laws, abortion and higher education

Vanity Fair: Is North Carolina Going to Become Like Ron DeSantis’s Florida?

Attorney General and candidate for governor Josh Stein kicked off Symone Sanders’ “On The Ballot” series over the weekend, detailing what’s at stake in North Carolina in 2024 and his plan to ensure the Tar Heel State keeps moving forward. Stein made clear that he’ll stand up for women’s reproductive rights in the state, while Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson would support a total ban on abortion even in cases of rape or incest.

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National reports have warned of the damage that Lieutenant Governor Robinson would inflict on North Carolinians, drawing “renewed scrutiny from both Democrats and Republicans, who fear that he could turn off more moderate voters.” Vanity Fair noted that he “has become known for past homophobic and antisemitic remarks, as well as his extreme views around reproductive rights” and wrote that if he was elected, “the purple state could quickly spiral into a right-wing laboratory mirroring Ron DeSantis’s Florida.”

Vanity Fair: Is North Carolina Going to Become Like Ron DeSantis’s Florida?

North Carolina’s Democratic governor, Roy Cooper—one of Democrats’ few success stories from the 2016 election cycle—will be termed out of his seat next year, and Republicans are itching to replace him. Enter Republican Mark Robinson, the state’s controversial lieutenant governor who has become known for past homophobic and antisemitic remarks, as well as his extreme views around reproductive rights, and who recently endorsed Donald Trump for president. It’s already looking like it will be one of the most expensive state-level races of the 2024 election cycle, and Robinson could very likely be in a head-to-head contest with Democrats’ top pick, state attorney general Josh Stein. Robinson is currently the front-runner in the Republican primary, against state treasurer Dale Folwell and former House lawmaker Mark Walker. Should he be elected, the purple state could quickly spiral into a right-wing laboratory mirroring Ron DeSantis’s Florida.

In social media posts, Robinson has previously trivialized domestic violence and sexual assault. In one 2017 Facebook post, Robinson wrote, “So if someone beats the bird dog hell of their spouse at the mall….is it still ‘Domestic Violence?’” And in another 2018 post: “So if a woman who ‘transitioned’ into a ‘man’ marries and abuses a man who ‘transitioned’ into a ‘woman’ is it still ‘violence against a woman?’ Will the feminist raise hell over it? I’m asking for a British Cigarette.” Robinson, as seen by the Facebook posts shared with Vanity Fair by liberal PAC American Bridge, also shared memes mocking alleged sexual assault victims of Harvey Weinstein and Bill O’Reilly and their supporters, and of Christine Blasey Ford, who accused Supreme Court justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault. (Kavanaugh denied her allegations.)

He has frequently targeted feminism on social media as well. “Feminism was planted in the ‘Garden,’ watered by the devil, and is harvested and sold by his minions,” he wrote in one post in 2016. Robinson also declared on Facebook in 2017 that “Lesbianism and feminism” are destroying the family; that American feminism is “a bad joke” (2019) and feminists are “as bad, if not worse, than racist”(2016); that any man who refers to himself as a feminist is “about as MANLY as a pair of lace panties”(2017); and that women who breastfeed in public are “shameless attention hogs” (2016). The Robinson campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Robinson rose to prominence in April 2018 after a YouTube video of him defending gun rights went viral. “It seems like every time we have one of these shootings, nobody wants to put the blame where it goes, which is at the shooter’s feet,” Robinson said in the video. His first political campaign was his 2020 bid for lieutenant governor, during which he did draw criticism for previous comments, but he largely embraced the controversy as part of his brand. Now, Robinson is drawing renewed scrutiny from both Democrats and Republicans, who fear that he could turn off more moderate voters. Meanwhile, Democrats are hoping Robinson can be a redux of far-right candidate Doug Mastriano’s failed bid for governor in Pennsylvania.

Gender and LGBTQ+ rights are likely to be key points of contention in the governor’s race. In his campaign launch video, Stein portrayed the governor’s race as a fight for the future of North Carolina. Using footage of Robinson and the January 6 Capitol attack, Stein positioned himself in opposition to “bomb throwers” and politicians who “spark division, ignite hate, and fan the flames of bigotry.” The clips of Robinson included the lieutenant governor arguing that men are better suited for leadership positions and referring to homosexuality as “filth.” Stein’s video also features footage of Robinson characterizing abortion as a “scourge that needs to be run out this land,” after which Stein says, “Robinson wants to tell you who you can marry, when you’ll be pregnant, and who you should hate.”