TO: Interested Parties

FR: Ford for Governor Campaign Manager, Zoë Kleinfeld

DA: 5 November 2025

RE: Joe Lombardo is About to ‘Feel a Little Pain'; Nation’s Most Vulnerable Republican Governor Faces a Hurricane of Voter Anger

Joe Lombardo is About to ‘Feel a Little Pain'; Nation’s Most Vulnerable Republican Governor Faces a Hurricane of Voter Anger

Yesterday, in record numbers, voters across the country repudiated the Trump-Lombardo Republican agenda. From Virginia and Pennsylvania to California and New Jersey, Americans delivered a clear verdict on Donald Trump’s second term: they’re fed up, they’re angry, and ready for change.

This gives Democrats strong momentum heading into the 2026 elections here in Nevada. With costs for housing, health care, and groceries soaring, an economy pummeled by Trump’s policies, and devastating cuts to Medicaid, clean energy, and veterans’ health care, Joe Lombardo isn’t just facing headwinds – he’s flying straight into a hurricane of an electorate ready for leaders who put working families above Trump’s agenda.

Joe Lombardo is the most vulnerable Republican Governor in the country up for reelection in 2026, and voters know it. Aaron Ford is the candidate to beat him. 

Even without Trump dragging him down, Lombardo is in deep trouble. Nevada has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation; health care costs have risen faster in Nevada than anywhere else; and school classrooms are among the most-crowded and worst-funded in America. 

Now, Lombardo Will Have To Own Donald Trump’s Destruction of Nevada’s Ailing Economy While Ford Focuses on Affordability

Joe Lombardo has tied himself to Donald Trump at every turn. After the elections a year ago, Trump credited Lombardo for helping deliver Nevada for him. For Lombardo, Trump is his “guy”. Lombardo even called Trump “the greatest president.” Lombardo is inextricably tied to Trump and will have to own everything that the second Trump administration does that hurts Nevada.

• Tariffs: Trump’s tariffs have devastated tourism and have caused prices to go up for families, small businesses, and consumers. Domestic and international travel to Las Vegas have plummeted, consumer spending and hotel occupancy are down. Yet, Lombardo has embraced Trump’s tariffs, saying Nevadans should “feel a little pain” from them, even as support for Trump’s handling of the economy falls to record lows. Americans disapprove of the Trump-Lombardo tariffs by 32 points according to recent polling.

• Cuts to Working Families: Lombardo said Nevadans should be “excited” about Trump’s tax bill that pays for tax cuts for billionaires by cutting Medicaid for over 100,000 people and slashing SNAP benefits that nearly 500,000 Nevadans rely on. 

• Education Cuts: Lombardo fully supports Trump’s decimation of the U.S. Department of Education, which Nevada relies on for $1 billion in education funding annually. According to a recent Quinnipiac poll, 60% of Americans oppose eliminating the Department of Education.

In the words of Nevada journalist and political guru Jon Ralston: Joe Lombardo “is going to have to wear” the harm being done by the Trump administration. 

“Feel A Little Pain”: Joe Lombardo’s Record of Failure in Nevada

• Vetoes against affordability: Lombardo didn’t need Trump to hurt working families – he’s done plenty of that himself. At a time when unemployment is high, tourism is low, and costs keep rising, Governor Joe Lombardo doubled down on his anti-affordability agenda when he vetoed bills that would have lowered prescription drug costs and provided guaranteed school meals for all Nevada students. After Lombardo vetoed the bill that would have lowered the prices of some prescription drugs, he raked in nearly $100,000 from the pharmaceutical industry. After his veto of the guaranteed school meals bill, school districts had to drain savings and families accumulated over one hundred thousands dollars in school lunch debt in order to feed hungry students.
  

• Housing crisis: The price of buying a home in Nevada is at record highs and surging costs have contributed to eviction rates in Nevada being among the highest in the country and homelessness in Las Vegas hitting its highest point since the Great Recession. According to one study, Nearly half of renters in Nevada are cost burdened, spending more than 30% of income on rent. Another report found that only 6% of single income households and less than half of dual income households can afford to buy a home in Clark County. Lombardo made Nevada’s housing crisis worse when he vetoed affordable housing legislation that would have helped keep rent costs down for vulnerable Nevadans on a fixed income, kept more people in their homes and off the streets, prevented landlords from abusing tenants by cracking down on junk fees, and prevented Wall Street firms from pricing working Nevadans out of home ownership. 
  

• Economic Stagnation: Under Lombardo, Nevada had the highest unemployment rate in the nation for more than a year, with the unemployment rate being higher today than when Lombardo took office and job growth lagging behind the rest of the nation over the course of Lombardo’s term.
  

Aaron Ford: The Strongest Candidate to Defeat Joe Lombardo

No candidate is better positioned to defeat Lombardo than Attorney General Aaron Ford.

• In 2022, Attorney General Aaron Ford earned more votes than any candidate in Nevada midterm history, leading the ticket and winning re-election by a commanding margin — outpacing Joe Lombardo’s gubernatorial performance that same year by +3.4 points in a raw vote head-to-head.

• Ford won Washoe County, Nevada’s bellwether county, and was the first Democrat in more than a decade to win rural Carson City. Ford also won more votes in Nevada’s rural counties than any other Democrat in 2022 — limiting losses in ruby red counties.

• In 2018, Ford flipped the Attorney General's seat from Republican to Democrat. 

• Voters showed their satisfaction in 2022 with Aaron Ford’s strong record as Attorney General, as law enforcement praised his record of fighting crime and consumer advocates have praised his lawsuits to hold large corporations accountable for screwing over working families. As Attorney General, Ford has been aggressive about fighting to lower costs and keeping money in Nevadans’ pockets.
  

With General Ford in the race, Cook Political Report has called this gubernatorial race a “toss up” and NBC has identified Lombardo as the most vulnerable Republican governor running for reelection. Recent polling shows that Lombardo sits at 40%, perilously low for an incumbent, and the match up between he and Ford is within the margin of error. Pollster Mike Noble noted, “Ford [is] attacking Lombardo on the pocketbook issues – cost of living, housing, affordability – and then you have Lombardo talking about everything but that." Earlier this year, polling showed that Lombardo’s support is shallow and drops significantly when voters are informed of his record in office. His support with Latino voters, an essential voting bloc in Nevada, is below average and also takes a hit when voters learn of his support of Trump’s reckless policies. 

Democratic leaders in Nevada have coalesced around Ford for Governor. Ford has received the endorsements of Nevada’s entire Democratic Congressional Delegation and a majority of state legislators — underscoring the broad support for his candidacy. In September, Ford announced that he raised more into his campaign in the first month than any candidate challenging an incumbent Governor in Nevada history, including Joe Lombardo. 

The Bottom Line

Nevada voters have a unique history of ousting incumbents they disapprove of, including U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen defeating incumbent Dean Heller in 2018 in a wave of anti-Trump backlash. That same year, following Trump’s first election, Democrats gained 7 governorships across the country, including in swing states like Michigan, Wisconsin and notably, Nevada, but also even in a red state like Kansas. Democrats also picked up 41 seats in the House. 

Donald Trump is already less popular today than he was at this point in his first term, with his approval rating being under water by double digits thanks to his unpopular agenda. Trump has especially struggled with Latino voters, an essential voting bloc in Nevada, as his approval rating has fallen by double digits since taking office. Polling also shows that 77% of Latino voters think Lombardo isn’t doing enough to stand up to Trump.

The political current that Joe Lombardo will be swimming against during his reelection campaign will be a deeply unfavorable one for Republicans, and Lombardo only won in 2022 by less than 16,000 votes, a 1.5% margin. In a swing state like Nevada, that clearly makes Lombardo the most vulnerable Republican up for reelection in 2026. 

Voters will continue to hear and learn about Lombardo’s true record as the cycle continues. As dissatisfaction with the new administration continues to grow and Nevadans continue to struggle in the Lombardo-Trump economy, they will be looking for leaders who will lower costs and stand up to President Trump and Elon Musk to do what’s best for Nevada.

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