NC climate efforts hinge on close governor’s race

By Adam Aton | 09/06/2024 06:36 AM EDT

Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate, has dismissed global warming as “junk science.”

North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein (left) is running for governor against Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson.

North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein (left) is running for governor against Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson. AP

Voting is about to start in this year’s marquee race for governor as North Carolina decides whether to continue its modest climate policies — or aggressively reverse them.

Absentee ballots, which in 2020 accounted for almost a fifth of North Carolina’s votes, will hit the mail Friday. The state has rocketed into the top tier of presidential battlegrounds after Democrats replaced President Joe Biden as their nominee with Vice President Kamala Harris.

Perhaps alone among the swing states, North Carolina features a down-ballot race that could draw just as much attention from voters.

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Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, a bombastic ally of former President Donald Trump and the state’s first Black major-party nominee for governor, has mobilized voters in both parties with remarks that range from staunchly conservative to outright conspiratorial.

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