Nevada’s Republican governor endorses Trump for president three weeks ahead of party-run caucus

LAS VEGAS– Nevada’s Republican governor endorsed former President Donald Trump on Thursday, offering major support to a key swing state that Trump wants to win handily in a caucus next month and that will be competitive in the general election.

Former Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo told The Nevada Independent on Thursday that he believed the economy and foreign affairs were more stable under Trump, and that for “all practical purposes … the race is over.”

Trump had endorsed Lombardo in the former sheriff’s 2022 run for governor, helping him emerge from a crowded Republican field to win the primary. Lombardo tried to distance himself from the former president during a general election debate before calling him “the greatest president” at a rally the following week.

Lombardo had steadily rebuked Trump’s false claims of a stolen 2020 election.

Lombardo told The Nevada Independent that he will root for Trump on Feb. 8 and write “none of the above” in the presidential primaries on Feb. 6.

Nevada has two nominating contests early next month: a primary that the state must host because of a 2021 law, and a caucus that the Nevada state GOP is holding two days later despite the primary. The Nevada Republican Party will honor the winner of the caucus with delegates only, and said any candidates filing for the primary would be excluded from the caucus.

Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis opted for the caucus, while former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley is the only active major candidate in the primaries.

Lombardo had previously criticized the Republican Party for the confusion that holding the caucus two days after the primaries will cause.