NC Senate leader endorses Lt. Governor Mark Robinson

The person often identified as the most powerful Republican in North Carolina state government has endorsed the state’s current highest-ranking Republican in the race for governor. As had been expected by many observers ever since the two men shared a stage last April when the candidacy was announced, Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger of Rockingham County on Wednesday endorsed Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson.

WRAL’s Will Doran reported that in endorsing Robinson, Berger said “I just think he’s got a good head on his shoulders. I think philosophically, he’s generally in the right place. I think he has been supportive of many of the things that we’ve done here at the General Assembly.”

Robinson is a fiercely conservative social warrior who first rose to prominence after delivering a fiery endorsement of gun rights at a Greensboro City Council meeting in 2018. Since winning election as Lt. Governor in 2020, he has regularly uttered controversial attacks on LGBTQ people, and made statements widely viewed and condemned as anti-Semitic.

Robinson’s candidacy and appeal are rooted in ultra-conservative evangelical churches and the movement often referred to a Christian Nationalism. As Newsline’s Joe Killian reported previously, Robinson appeared in 2022 at multiple events sponsored by the far-right American Renewal Project, in which he made explosive statements that insulted women, higher education, and other Christian churches and their pastors, and suggested righteous Christians should follow the violent and confrontational methods now used by neo-Nazi groups and the far-right militia group The Proud Boys. Robinson is a vocal ally of former President Donald Trump.

Robinson’s public statements and persona contrast sharply with those of the Senate leader. Berger is a mostly soft-spoken smalltown lawyer who has amassed immense political power during 13 years as the leader of the state Senate by working almost exclusively behind the scenes. Berger has not made an endorsement in the 2024 presidential contest.

When it comes to policy priorities, however, the two men have much in common. Throughout his tenure as Senate leader, Berger has pursued an aggressive conservative agenda on a wide array of issues, including tax policy, public education, environmental protection, abortion, and the rights of transgender people. These efforts may have reached their apogee during the 2023 legislative session as Berger helped spearhead a successful effort to override gubernatorial vetoes of a raft of controversial conservative agenda items — many of them championed by conservative culture warriors.

Of interest in light of Wednesday’s announcement is the fact that the 2023 GOP agenda also included several controversial measures that stripped powers from the Governor’s office. Robinson has not spoken publicly on those bills.

The latest Meredith College poll showed Robinson running far ahead of his two main rivals for the GOP gubernatorial nomination — State Treasurer Dale Folwell and attorney Bill Graham.

The window for candidates to officially file with the State Board of Elections commences Monday December 4. The primary is scheduled for Tuesday March 5.