Four Mark Robinson campaign officials resign following CNN report

CNN
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Four top officials from Mark Robinson’s campaign for North Carolina governor have resigned, the campaign announced Sunday.

General Counsel and Senior Advisor Conrad Pogorzelski III, Campaign Manager Chris Rodriguez, Chief Financial Officer Heather Whillier and Deputy Campaign Manager Jason Rizk have stepped down from the campaign.

Robinson’s campaign announcement comes after a CNN report revealed inflammatory comments the lieutenant governor and Republican gubernatorial candidate made on a porn website chat room more than a decade ago. Among the obscene comments, Robinson described himself as a “black Nazi” and said he used to “check out” women at a public gym when he was 14.

Robinson has a long history of making inflammatory statements, but the newly discovered forum posts go even further.

Since CNN’s report, some North Carolina Republicans have pressured Robinson to step down — even though the deadline for him to formally withdraw from the candidacy has passed. Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign has also sought to exploit Robinson’s association with former President Donald Trump in a new ad.

In a statement announcing his departure, Robinson reiterated his intention to remain in the race.

“My campaign will continue to focus on the substantive issues of this election: building an economy that thrives from Murphy to Manteo; cutting taxes and eliminating unnecessary red tape; removing politics from our classrooms; and fighting violent crime and dangerous drugs,” Robinson said in the statement.

“Polls have consistently underestimated Republican support in North Carolina for multiple cycles now, and with much 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 voters and win on November 5th.”

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.