On Wednesday morning, Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo was at the Western Nevada Supply in Sparks for his reelection campaign.
Lombardo announced his bid in Las Vegas on Monday. Since then, he's worked his way through several counties, leading up to him addressing northern Nevadans.
At his event, several people expressed their support for him.
"We are in a much better place today with Governor Joe Lombardo," said Paul Enos, CEO of the Nevada Trucking Association, who was also emceeing.
"With the Governor's permission, I would love to be the first mayor of Nevada to endorse again for your next campaign," said Sparks Mayor Ed Lawson.
Washoe County District Attorney Chris Hicks and Sparks City Attorney Wes Duncan were in attendance.
Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam also gave some remarks on the podium about the former Las Vegas Sheriff, specifically for his role during the Davis Fire from last September.
"And during that time and initial response, I quickly recognized the fact that I did not have the resources to make sure we could keep our community safe," Balaam said. "So, I may have bypassed a few formalities, but I knew if I made one phone call, it would be done, and I did. I made one phone call to Governor Joe Lombardo, and within an hour, I had the entire northern command of NHP standing by my side, and they were assigned to help us throughout the duration of that fire."
Other supporters in the crowd said they liked what they saw.
"It was fabulous," said Laurie Carey, supporter. "I like that he went over all the things he was able to accomplish and how much he was pushed back on and still got a lot through."Â
A good chunk of the current Governor's speech did center around things that he liked that his administration had done.
Those things centered around housing, education, economics, and his work with Tesla and Redwood Materials.
"Since we took office, we have created over ten thousand new jobs in our state, and I'm pleased to announce that thousands of those jobs will be in northern Nevada," Lombardo said.
The Governor praised his education and housing legislation that was passed in the recent legislative session.
Lombardo and Sheriff Balaam criticized lawmakers for the public safety bill that did not pass out of the Nevada State Legislature.
"We can no longer have soft on crime attitudes," the Governor said. Â
Lombardo said if he is reelected and his tougher-on-crime legislation stalls in the Capitol once again, he will try to push it on the ballot initiatives like he's currently doing with voter ID.
Lombardo has not been scared to use his veto power, but he says he wishes it weren't that way.
"Since taking office, I've vetoed more than 160 bills," Lombardo said as applause started to erupt. "Oh no, don't clap. Bad government. That's bad government, but that's what you hired me to do, right? To push back on bad policy."
His challenger, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, commented on the Governor's numerous vetoes.
"Governor Lombardo is going to go down in history as being the Governor who's vetoed the most bipartisan bills in the history of our state, and that reveals something, and that is he doesn't know how to work with people," Ford said.
During the speech, Lombardo touched on what he believes needs to improve in the state.
"Our unemployment rate is unacceptable, and so is the high number of vacant jobs waiting for the right applicant," he said.
Meanwhile, Ford thinks the Governor is the reason a lot of people's wallets are hurting.
"Let's be clear, Joe Lombardo has failed to make Nevada more affordable," Ford said. "Unemployment is higher today than it was when he took office. Housing, groceries, prescription drugs, all of those things are more expensive today than they were when he took office."
Earlier this week, Washoe County Commission Chair Alexis Hill, who is facing Ford in the Democratic primary, said she believes she's a better fit for the Silver State than the current regime.
"I think there's a clear contrast between my vision for Nevada and Governor Joe Lombardo's," she said in a statement. "Establishment candidates are the perfect choice if you're satisfied with the status quo. I think we need to fix our streets, fund our schools, and support our families. I look forward to debating the issues."
