The party is prohibited from selecting a replacement who already ran in the same race in this year’s primary. That means State Treasurer Dale Folwell and attorney Bill Graham would not be allowed to replace Robinson.

Donald Trump’s campaign declined to comment Thursday on whether North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, whom the former president once described as “Martin Luther King on steroids,” should drop out of the battleground state’s race for governor.

Robinson denied the CNN report, which said he referred to himself as a "black NAZI" and expressed support for bringing back slavery more than 10 years ago.