RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump endorsed North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson for governor on Saturday, several months after pledging to do so.
At a rally at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex, Trump compared Robinson, who is Black, to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Trump referred to Robinson as “Martin Luther King on steroids.”
Trump said Robinson wasn’t sure how to respond when compared to the legendary civil rights leader, telling him: “I think you’re better than Martin Luther King. I think you are Martin Luther King times two.”
“You should like it,” Trump said.
2024 North Carolina primary elections
Trump listed Robinson among several candidates whom people should vote for in Tuesday's North Carolina Republican primaries, saying “they have my complete and total endorsement." Trump is also on the primary ballot as he seeks to eliminate his last remaining rival, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, from mathematical contention for the GOP nomination for president.
Despite the lack of a formal endorsement, Trump's support combined with strong fundraising and popularity among the Republican base have helped make Robinson the GOP's front-runner for the gubernatorial nomination.
Robinson's primary rivals — State Treasurer Dale Folwell and trial attorney Bill Graham — have questioned Robinson's ability to win the general election in November, particularly in light of harsh comments on LGBTQ+ rights and other issues.
Trump called Robinson, who also spoke at Saturday's rally, an “incredible gentleman" and a “great, natural speaker.” Trump recalled, with some imprecision, how Robinson rose to fame after a 2018 speech to the Greensboro City Council in support of gun rights and police that went viral.
That led Robinson to a National Rifle Association board position and being elected the state's first Black lieutenant governor in 2020 in his first bid for public office.
Robinson, a Greensboro native, said in a news release that he was “humbled” to have Trump's endorsement and looked forward to working with Trump to "lead our united Republican ticket to victory in November, and get our state and country back on track.”
Voters also will choose a Democratic nominee for governor on Tuesday. The field includes Attorney General Josh Stein and former state Supreme Court Associate Justice Mike Morgan. Term-limited Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper endorsed Stein months ago.
State Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton said the endorsement wasn't a surprise. North Carolina doesn't need a leader in Robinson who would “prioritize job-killing culture wars that take our state backward," she added in a news release.
Statewide elections are usually close affairs in the nation’s ninth-largest state.