Stein leads Robinson by 11 points in NC governor race: Survey

A new North Carolina survey found state Attorney General Josh Stein (D) has a double-digit lead over Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R) in the gubernatorial race.

The survey was conducted following an explosive report from CNN that alleged Robinson made many offensive statements on a porn site more than 10 years ago, calling himself a “black NAZI,” among other comments.

The Marist poll finds Stein leading with 54 percent support compared to Robinson’s 43 percent.

Compared to a Marist survey from March, Robinson has lost 5 percentage points among North Carolina voters.

The survey found Stein’s backers are more committed than Robinson’s, though 80 percent of respondents with a candidate preference said they strongly support their candidate of choice.

Before the CNN report was released Sept. 19, speculation about the article’s contents caused some to wonder whether Robinson could drop out of the race, especially because the state was to begin mailing out ballots the next day.

Robinson, who is backed by former President Trump, said he would remain in the race and has denied the report.

The North Carolina Republican Party released a statement backing Robinson amid the allegations. But some Republicans are attempting to distance themselves from Robinson, including a group of GOP governors who previously endorsed his campaign.

According to The Hill/Decision Desk HQ polling aggregate, Stein has an 11-point lead.

The survey was conducted Sept. 19-24 among 1,605 North Carolina voters and has a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points.