Trump says he's 'unfamiliar' with key race featuring embattled Republican he's praised

Former President Donald Trump claimed to a reporter in Asheville, North Carolina, that he is unfamiliar with the gubernatorial race, where embattled GOP Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson is facing off against Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein.

"I'm not familiar with the race. I haven't seen it," said Trump, according to Axios.

This comes even though Trump endorsed Robinson in March — and gave him high praise at his rallies, calling him "Martin Luther King on steroids."

Robinson, a previously little-known right-wing activist who shocked many political observers with his election to the lieutenant governorship in 2020, has spent the whole of the campaign running from incendiary remarks he made on social media prior to taking office, including endorsing various conspiracy theories, attacking school shooting survivors, and questioning the Holocaust.

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But things reached a head in September when CNN reported that Robinson made posts on a pornographic internet forum calling himself a "Black NAZI" and praising slavery. The report triggered widespread condemnation from other North Carolina Republicans and a mass exodus of staffers from Robinson's office. Current polls suggest Robinson is rapidly bleeding support as North Carolina Republicans shift focus to the presidential race instead.

Trump and Robinson have not shared a campaign stage for weeks since the report came out. Trump praised Robinson as recently as early October, proclaiming him to be a "great one."

North Carolina has emerged as a significant battleground state in the 2024 election with polls showing the presidential contest extremely tight. The state narrowly backed Trump in the last two presidential elections.