North Carolina
Could Mark Robinson cost Donald Trump North Carolina? Experts weigh in
North Carolina’s 2024 gubernatorial race took a dramatic turn last week when the campaign of controversial Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson was hit by a new scandal.
CNN reported allegations of racist and sexist posts Robinson allegedly made on a pornography forum, raising questions of whether Robinson’s troubles could extend beyond his own race and hurt former President Donald Trump’s bid for North Carolina.
The CNN report covered posts made on the forum by a user with a username tied to Robinson. The user made posts about enjoying transgender pornography (Robinson has publicly called transgender people “filth”), about desiring to own slaves, and in one post, the user described themself as a “Black Nazi.”
Woody Marshall/News & Record via AP
But could Robinson’s scandal cost Trump the critical state of North Carolina?
Newsweek contacted several North Carolina-based political analysts, who are split on the impact Robinson’s troubles will have on Trump’s 2024 prospects in the state.
Robinson, the GOP’s nominee for governor, has denied the allegations, calling them “salacious tabloid lies.” Nevertheless, the damage may already be done and many of his top staffers have since resigned.
Robinson, who Trump has previously endorsed and described as “like Martin Luther King on steroids” was notably absent from Trump’s rally in Wilmington last Saturday, a sign that the Trump campaign may be distancing itself from his increasingly embattled gubernatorial candidate.
Trump won North Carolina in both the 2016 and 2020 elections, albeit narrowly, and the latest polling aggregates show him just half a percentage point ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris in the state.
Impact on Trump Uncertain
Mitch Kokai, a political analyst at the John Locke Foundation, a conservative think tank, downplayed the idea that Robinson’s scandal would hurt Trump, telling Newsweek: “I doubt that Mark Robinson’s latest controversy will have much of an impact on Donald Trump at the top of the ticket. The former president has won North Carolina’s electoral votes twice, despite all of his own electoral baggage,” Kokai said.
He noted that Trump has been maintaining a lead in North Carolina polls, even as Robinson has fallen further behind Democratic rival Josh Stein in recent months.
Kokai added that Trump’s unique political brand, combined with his focus on issues like the economy and border security, is likely to insulate him from any fallout related to Robinson.
“Trump is likely to continue to hammer away at the same themes… It’s unclear whether that strategy will get him North Carolina’s 16 electoral votes, but it’s more likely to have an impact on the presidential race than Mark Robinson’s current predicament.”
Ticket-Splitting Tradition in North Carolina
David B. McLennan, a political science professor and pollster at Meredith University, offered a similar assessment, telling Newsweek that while Trump has consistently outpolled Robinson, the presidential race in North Carolina remains tight.
“Mark Robinson has always run behind Donald Trump in terms of voter preferences in polls,” McLennan said, adding that the margin widened in recent months.
He suggests that Trump may be “somewhat inoculated” from Robinson’s problems, though McLennan warned that in a margin-of-error race, even a slight dip in Trump’s numbers could be pivotal. “The loss of a few percentage points by Trump could matter.”
North Carolina has a history of ticket-splitting, with voters supporting candidates from different parties for state and national offices.
In the past two election cycles, voters backed Trump for president while re-electing Democratic Governor Roy Cooper.
McLennan predicted this trend to continue in 2024, with Trump running competitively against Harris, even if Robinson falters.
Robinson Could Damage GOP Brand
Chris Cooper, a professor of political science at Western Carolina University, agreed that ticket-splitting could be a saving grace for Trump.
However, he cautioned that Robinson’s scandal could still harm Trump if it dampens Republican enthusiasm.
“The bigger problem for Trump is if Robinson does damage the party brand enough that infrequent voters who lean Republican tend to stay home,” Cooper told Newsweek.
He said that, before the latest scandal, 8 percent to 12 percent of Trump voters were already planning to vote for Josh Stein over Robinson.
If that number grows, it could signal that Robinson’s candidacy is harming the party, though not necessarily Trump himself.
However, Cooper noted that predicting voter turnout, especially among occasional voters, is notoriously difficult. “Unfortunately for those who like to play the prediction game, that will be difficult, if not impossible to know until election day,” he added.
Demographic Shifts Could Play a Role
The changing demographics of North Carolina may also factor into how much Robinson’s scandal affects the GOP’s chances.
Susan Roberts, a political science professor at Davidson College, told Newsweek that many North Carolinians weren’t born in the state, and the influx of younger professionals could influence voter behavior.
“The demographic profile of North Carolinians is changing,” Roberts said, noting that many of these voters are unaffiliated and could be swayed by Robinson’s controversial views.
While Roberts did not believe Robinson’s troubles will drastically change minds about Trump, she suggested that some voters might skip the gubernatorial race while still casting a vote for president.
“I don’t think Robinson can necessarily pull Trump down,” she said, but acknowledged that unaffiliated voters might start to associate Trump with Robinson’s inflammatory rhetoric.
The Final Verdict? Unclear
For now, experts agree that Trump’s prospects in North Carolina are not entirely tied to Robinson’s fate.
While the scandal may have thrown Robinson’s campaign into turmoil, the real test will be whether it depresses turnout among Republican-leaning voters in a state Trump is likely to need to retake the White House.
Charles Gaddy was tuna fishing with his dad on Sunday, more than 40 miles northeast of Oregon Inlet, when he saw something he’d never seen before.
“I was just looking in the water, seeing if, you know, any birds or anything, and I see this big gray fish with white dots,” said Gaddy. “Just from reading books and watching movies as a kid, I was like, ‘that’s got to be a whale shark.’”
The 18-year-old said they circled it. He grabbed his GoPro camera and started recording.
“It’s just sitting there, swimming beside us. It really, truly was amazing,” said Gaddy.
Whale sharks are the world’s largest fish. They’re currently listed as endangered by the Union for the Conservation of Nature.
In the Western Atlantic, whale sharks are primarily found in the Gulf and throughout the Caribbean, according to Eric Hoffmayer, a research fishing biologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service. He said they’ve seen numerous whale sharks make their way up the Gulf Stream, ending up in the New England area in late summer and early fall.
“We had an animal last year that we tagged off Tampa and within a month was off New York, and cruised right past North Carolina about this time of year,” said Hoffmayer. “It’s not unheard of, but it’s not real common either.”
Gaddy recognized how lucky he was to experience a sighting.
“To be able to see one in person, especially locally, it’s very truly amazing,” said Gaddy. “It’s no doubt a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I’m no doubt very blessed.”
If you do encounter a whale shark in the wild, Hoffmayer said, you need to be careful if you’re in a boat because they spend a lot of time at the surface. If you get in the water, keep a safe distance.
“Most people I’ve talked to who have encountered whale sharks, it’s like a life-changing experience,” said Hoffmayer. “It’s really cool to see an animal that large in the wild doing its thing.”
You can report whale shark sightings to the University of Southern Mississippi’s Center for Fisheries Research and Development. If you’re able to capture a good picture of a whale shark, you can see if it matches one already in a database by uploading the photo and information about the sighting online.
OMAHA, Neb. — The championship series is set. And without a doubt, the two hottest teams, North Carolina and Oklahoma, are paired to play for a national title at the College World Series.
There was no backing into the finals for these squads, one that looked like a contender all season and one that did not until two weeks ago.
North Carolina (53-12-1) and Oklahoma (41-22) swept through opposite brackets at Charles Schwab Field. UNC punctuated its three-game run with a 12-7 victory Wednesday against West Virginia. OU followed by defeating Georgia, the regular-season and postseason SEC champ, 11-4.
Iconic brands in college sports, the Tar Heels and Sooners will meet Saturday at 8 p.m. ET in the opening game of a best-of-three series.
North Carolina seeks its first national championship in baseball. It lost in the finals in 2006 and 2007. Oklahoma has won two crowns, most recently in 1994, and it lost in the finals in 2022.
LET’S PLAY FOR A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/588pVssfOR
— Oklahoma Baseball (@OU_Baseball) June 18, 2026
“It really hasn’t set in yet,” said UNC second baseman Gavin Gallaher, who was 4 for 5 on Wednesday with four RBIs. “After the game, we shook hands, and I was just kind of walking around, looking up in the stands, looking at my family, just kind of speechless, to be honest.”
The Tar Heels were seeded fifth in the 64-team field announced on Memorial Day. In Omaha, they have not trailed by more than one run — and for just three innings. North Carolina’s pitching staff, on maximum rest during its stay in Omaha, is set up well for the weekend.
Junior ace starter Jason DeCaro, who worked 6 2/3 innings Friday, enters the championship series in position to start the opener. Star freshman Caden Glauber, who was needed for 2 1/3 innings Wednesday afternoon as WVU mounted a comeback, has thrown only 54 pitches in the CWS. The Tar Heels are 28-0 this year when Glauber appears in a game. He’s won 11 decisions without a loss.
Sixth-year coach Scott Forbes took over in 2021 for Mike Fox, who brought North Carolina to the CWS seven times. Bids for a first national title fell short in 2006 and 2007 against Oregon State in the championship series.
Forbes joined Fox’s staff before that 2006 season as a 31-year-old pitching coach.
“I’m trying not to get emotional,” Forbes said, “just thinking about that team and Coach Fox giving me the opportunity. I wasn’t the popular hire at the time. There were a lot bigger names. I had never been a pitching coach. But Coach Fox saw something in me and gave me that opportunity.”
Oklahoma returns to the championship series for the second time in five years. It lost to Ole Miss in 2022. The Rebels that year were the first team to win a championship with a losing record in conference play.
OU is attempting to become the second.
Coach Skip Johnson’s team finished 14-16 in the SEC and lost four consecutive league series to close the regular season. But the Sooners clawed back in Regional play, winning two elimination games at Georgia Tech, the No. 2 overall seed.
OU swept Kansas in a Super Regional and beat SEC foes Alabama and Georgia before it won the rematch Wednesday night against the Bulldogs.
The Sooners remade their pitching rotation in the postseason to ride three true freshmen: left-hander Cord Rager, a season-long starter, Xander Mercurius and Nick Wesloski. The latter duo had combined to start four games this season before they both beat the Bulldogs, who came to Omaha with the most powerful lineup in college baseball.
Wesloski fired 5 2/3 innings Wednesday and struck out four, one off his career high.
Rager and Mercurius have inspired Wesloski, he said.
“Seeing the way they dominated and they carry themselves,” he said, “those guys are just elite. Watching them go about their process has made me a better pitcher. Those guys look unstoppable, unbeatable. It’s added to my confidence level. They influence me a ton.”
OU got hot at the plate, too. In eliminating Georgia, it homered five times, including two apiece by Jason Walk and Dasan Harris. Before Wednesday, Walk had hit four bombs in 200 at-bats; Harris had four in 137 at-bats.
Twenty-five of Oklahoma’s 90 home runs this year have come in 10 postseason games.
It pays to get hot at the right time.
“You’re looking at a baseball team, a selfless baseball team that’s really fun to be around,” said Johnson, the ninth-year OU coach. “Hopefully, I can just stay out of the way the next two or three games.”
RALEIGH, NC — For years, WRAL Investigates tracked problems with North Carolina’s unemployment benefits system.
Now, two new follow-up audits show the same problems still persist inside the Division of Employment Security (DES) when it comes to paying the correct amount of unemployment and paying those first-time benefits on time.
The first audit deals with improper payments. The category includes fraud, overpayments and underpayments.
From 2021-2025, the auditor found the improper payment rate for unemployment benefits in North Carolina was 22%, most of which were overpayments. That’s more than double the national standard of 10% error rate.
According to the North Carolina Office of the State Auditor (OSA), those payment errors cost taxpayers more than $90 million over the expected 10% error rate.
In fact, the improper payment rate got worse compared to an initial audit’s findings back in 2022, when OSA found errors in 18% of payments.
The second follow-up audit out today dealt with timeliness of benefits, meaning when people finally got paid after filing and qualifying for unemployment.
In 2024- 2025, 28% of first-time unemployment checks were not cut within the 14-day federal standard. While not great, it’s an improvement compared to previous audit findings of 40% late checks in 2022 and 43% of late checks in 2024.
In fact, the auditor’s office noted on-time payments in below the national standard in just 3 of the past 20 years.
The Division of Unemployment Security agreed with the findings and recommendations to improve North Carolina’s unemployment system.
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