North Carolina gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson’s advertising spending appears to have collapsed amid mounting Republican scandals and worsening poll numbers.

The lieutenant governor’s apparent shortfall comes despite changes to North Carolina’s campaign finance laws that would make it easier for national donors to contribute to his campaign without leaving fingerprints on their money.

Robinson will face the state’s Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein in November. Democratic campaigns in the state have reserved about $15 million in television advertising space in North Carolina between now and Election Day, according to AdImpact, an election data tracking service.

Republicans, however, have only earmarked about $865,000 over the same period. Robinson has spent about $8 million on ads since the start of the general election. As of today, he has about $64,000 in earmarked ad commitments for the remainder of the campaign, according to AdImpact.

Republicans “are being outpaced in many races, but the future reservations are volatile and can change at any moment,” said John Link, vice president of data for AdImpact. But he also described Democrats’ ad spending this cycle in North Carolina as “insane” and record-breaking.

Since August 17, advertisers have spent $7 million supporting Democrats in North Carolina, compared to $4.7 million supporting Republicans.

Through the end of June, Stein’s campaign had raised $32.9 million and had $15.9 million in the bank. Robinson’s campaign had raised $15.8 million — a record for a Republican candidate — with $6.6 million left.

In June, the Republican-dominated North Carolina Legislature passed changes to the state’s campaign finance laws that allow federal PACs and political organizations to contribute to North Carolina candidates and political committees without registering or reporting as a state PAC. It allows donors from across the country to give money to North Carolina candidates through state committees without disclosure.

The move was seen as an advantage for Robinson, whose sharp rhetoric has sparked outbursts of anger over the course of his public career. Robinson’s comments attacking the LGBTQ+ community, women and even other Black people painted him as a provocateur, even before his June appearance at a Bladen County church, where he said “some people need to be killed” in a speech in which he described political opponents as “communists” and “evil.”

Robinson’s campaign emphasized that he was referring to America’s opponents in World War II and called on all politicians to reject violence.

Two weeks later, a gunman tried to assassinate Donald Trump, making Robinson’s rhetoric even more clear.

Robinson has consistently trailed Stein in a state that otherwise leans to the right. Most polls over the past six weeks have shown Stein with a four- to 10-point lead over Robinson. The Republican firebrand has faced questions about mismanagement of his campaign finances and his wife’s nonprofit.

A three-and-a-half-year investigation into Robinson’s campaign spending prior to his election as lieutenant governor is ongoing following an initial complaint by Bob Hall, a campaign finance watchdog and former editor of Democracy NC. The kayak shop owner recently told reporters that thousands of dollars in campaign purchases claimed by the Robinson campaign four years ago never materialized.

Meanwhile, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services last week ordered Balanced Nutrition Inc., a nonprofit led by Robinson’s wife, to repay more than $132,000 in federal funding. The order follows a months-long investigation — one Robinson described as politically motivated — that uncovered “serious deficiencies” at the food-relief nonprofit, which had improperly billed the federal government and had excessive administrative fees and inadequate documentation.

Robinson’s general election campaign has largely avoided the mainstream media—requests for comment for this piece went unanswered—relying instead on sporadic outreach to conservative radio hosts and conservative social media platforms. In recent days, Robinson has gone public and attempted to reimagine himself. He has a dozen public events scheduled in the coming weeks, a far cry from his largely empty schedule of recent months.

But Robinson is competing with Stein’s overcrowded advertising campaign, which features Robinson’s own voice.