Trump campaigns in North Carolina without state's top Republican candidate

WILMINGTON, N.C. — 

Republican statesmanlike nominee Donald Trump returned to North Carolina connected Saturday, stumping successful the confederate battleground authorities that some Democrats and Republicans are treating arsenic progressively captious to triumph successful November.

But the erstwhile president campaigned successful Wilmington, on the state's confederate coast, without Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson, the Republican gubernatorial nominee and 1 of the erstwhile president's apical surrogates successful the state, pursuing a CNN study astir his alleged posts connected a pornography website’s connection board.

Robinson has denied penning the posts, which see lewd and racist comments, saying Thursday that helium wouldn’t beryllium forced retired of the contention by “salacious tabloid lies.”

Trump's run has appeared to region itself from Robinson successful the aftermath of the CNN reporting, which the AP has not independently verified, saying successful a connection to the AP that Trump “is focused connected winning the White House and redeeming this country" and calling North Carolina “a captious portion of that plan," without mentioning Robinson.

While Robinson won his Republican gubernatorial superior successful March, he’s been trailing successful respective caller polls to Democratic nominee Josh Stein, the state’s lawyer general. State Republican officials person stood by Robinson, whose determination to support campaigning could endanger Republican prospects successful different cardinal races, including Trump’s efforts successful a battleground authorities helium antecedently won twice.

Democrats person seized connected the accidental to item Trump's ties to Robinson, with billboards showing the 2 together, arsenic good arsenic a caller advertisement from Vice President Kamala Harris ' run highlighting the Republican candidates' ties arsenic good arsenic Robinson's enactment for a statewide termination prohibition without exceptions. According to Harris' campaign, it's their archetypal advertisement effort related to tying Trump to a down-ballot race.

Outdoor rally

Trump's archetypal outdoor rally since the 2nd evident effort to assassinate him was astatine a Wilmington airport, wherever a ample American emblem hung from a crane, with hundreds of chairs and lasting country for galore much spectators. Bulletproof solid surrounded the country connected stage, a caller precaution for outdoor venues the Secret Service implemented aft a slug grazed Trump's receptor during a rally successful Butler, Pennsylvania.

Charlie Kimball, a 46-year-old erstwhile operation idiosyncratic from Burgaw, who said helium is connected disability, dismissed the allegations against Robinson arsenic “fake news."

“That’s his idiosyncratic life. Who cares?” Kimball said. “It’s each hearsay. … It’s not true. It’s each speculation. Where’s the proof?"

A Republican has carried North Carolina successful each wide predetermination since 1976 prevention one, erstwhile Barack Obama won the authorities successful 2008. Trump won determination successful some his erstwhile campaigns but by little than 1.5 percent points implicit Democrat Joe Biden successful 2020, the closest borderline of immoderate authorities that Trump won. That's portion of wherefore Democrats spot the authorities arsenic winnable this fall.

With neither Senate spot up for grabs, the gubernatorial contention has been North Carolina's marquee down-ballot contention this year. Robinson has go a earthy apical surrogate for Trump successful the authorities and a predominant beingness astatine run events there, appearing with the nominee arsenic precocious arsenic past period astatine an event. Trump has agelong praised Robinson, who is Black, referring to him arsenic “Martin Luther King connected steroids."

Endorsing Robinson up of the Republican gubernatorial primary, Trump continued: “I deliberation you’re amended than Martin Luther King. I deliberation you are Martin Luther King times two.”

State up for grabs

While much visits person been made by statesmanlike contenders to the Rust Belt battlegrounds of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, some Harris and Trump person made aggregate trips to North Carolina, highlighting the state’s importance. Following Biden’s departure from the contention successful July, Trump held his archetypal large-scale rally there, turning his afloat absorption toward Harris.

Wilmington is location to New Hanover County, which Biden won successful 2020. But his borderline implicit Trump successful the region was among his slimmest successful the state.

Julia Novotny, 55, of Wilmington, said she's travel astir to supporting Trump aft archetypal reservations due to the fact that of allegations that he's been sexually abusive to women, which helium denies.

“He’s classy, he’s a gentleman, helium looks bully successful a suit, and helium has beardown values,” Novotny said. “Everybody makes mistakes, and whether helium did oregon didn’t, I don’t know, but you cognize what? Leave him alone. He’s a bully man. He wants to alteration this country. Our state is successful the dirt, and the lone antheral who pulls america retired is Donald Trump.”