Ford triumphs in Nevada governor primary, takes aim at Republican incumbent

CARSON CITY, Nev. (CN) — Nevada Republican Governor Joe Lombardo never faced a real threat in his bid for another term.

He had primary challengers on Tuesday’s ballot, but no serious competition. That will come, or at least Democrats hope, in November when the Republican incumbent will face Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford.

Lombardo had 153,300 votes, or 91.1%.

“I am honored by the confidence Nevadans have placed in me, and I will continue working every day on behalf of every Nevadan — whether they voted for me or not,” Lombardo posted to X.

Among Democrats, Ford took the top spot with 105,081 votes to Washoe County Commissioner Alexis Hill’s 37,851 votes, or 63.8% to 23%.

“It’s official: Tonight is the beginning of the end of the failed Lombardo-Trump economy,” Ford posted to X. “Let’s make Nevada Affordable.”

Vote totals are incomplete and unofficial.

In Nevada elections for partisan offices, the candidate with the most votes in each major political party advances to the general election.

Many political observers see the governor’s race as the most important. The governor has broad powers in a state where the Legislature meets for four months every two years.

It’s also a race high on Democrats’ wish list, as they’d like to oust an incumbent Republican in a swing state.

However, it’s not the only race pundits are watching.

The 2nd Congressional District, roughly comprising the northern half of the state, is wide open. Republican U.S. Representative Mark Amodei opted against running again, leading several candidates to enter the race.

Top Democrats running for the seat included Teresa Benitez-Thompson, Kathy Durham and Greg Kidd.

Benitez-Thompson, a former Assembly majority leader, had 20,231 votes, or 46%, winning her primary. Kidd — an independent before switching to the Democratic Party — took second with 10,088 votes, or 23%.

On the Republican side, eyes focused on David Flippo and James Settelmeyer. Endorsed by President Donald Trump, Flippo won his race with 32,862 votes, or 45.6%. A former state Senate minority leader, Settelmeyer was endorsed by Lombardo and Amodei. He took second with 25,426 votes, or 35.3%.

“Thank you Nevada!” Flippo posted to X. “I will join with President [Trump] to fight for the hard working men and women of our state!”

An otherwise local office — justice of the peace in Nye County — has drawn greater attention because one of its candidates and former justice of the peace, Michele Fiore, received a pardon from Trump last year.

Fiore faced Michael Foley, Richard Hamilton and Scott Oakley at the ballot box.

Foley had 2,075 votes, or 40.1%. Second place was Oakley, with 1,410 votes, or 27.8%.

The top two vote-getters will advance to November’s election.

Fiore held third place Wednesday morning with 1,054 votes, or 20.8%.

Federal prosecutors took Fiore to court on accusations that she improperly pocketed funds for a memorial for fallen police officers. Convicted in 2024 on federal charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Fiore was pardoned by Trump weeks before her May 2025 sentencing.

She’s currently suspended with pay from the judgeship.

Some surprises

Little surprised Jon Ralston, CEO of the Nevada Independent, in Tuesday’s election.

One surprise was the secretary of state’s race, in which Republican Jim Marchant won his primary with 52,171 votes, or 32.5%. Ralston told Courthouse News that Marchant’s win essentially hands the office to Democrats come November, “because he’s so out there.”

A former Assembly member, Marchant lost a 2020 congressional run. Ralston’s outlet has reported that Marchant filed suit over the election, lost in court and then blamed the result on election fraud.

Marchant will face Democratic incumbent Francisco Aguilar in November.

As for the governor’s race, Ralston gave the edge to Lombardo come November. He called it a close race, though Lombardo is the incumbent.

Concerning the 2nd District race, Ralston said Flippo ran a “scorched earth” campaign against a well-liked opponent. Despite that, he sees a Democrat win as difficult. No Democrat has ever represented the district.

“It’s still a longshot, but it’s not impossible,” he added.

Another surprise was the Nye County justice of the peace race. He called Fiore a ferocious campaigner.

“Nye County politics are strange,” he added. “She got convicted of a serious crime and got pardoned by Trump.”

For Sondra Cosgrove, a history professor at the College of Southern Nevada, her state’s primary elections typically favor establishment candidates. That held true on Tuesday, except in the 2nd District race. She said Settelmeyer was the establishment’s pick.

According to Cosgrove, Flippo won because much of the district is rural with many Trump supporters. The president endorsed the retired Air Force veteran last month.

As for the governor’s race, Cosgrove saw no surprises in Lombardo securing his party’s nomination, or with Ford getting around 60% in his primary. She said an incumbent governor is tough to beat in Nevada.

“I don’t think they’ve really started to compete with each other,” she added of Lombardo and Ford.

What’s concerning for her is turnout.

Clark County — the state’s most populous county — reached 16.6% turnout as of Wednesday. She thinks it’ll hit at least 20% once all ballots are counted, but it’s still worrisome to the executive director of Vote Nevada.

“It worries me when people say, ‘No, I’m not going to vote,’” Cosgrove told Courthouse News Wednesday. “We send a mail-in ballot to everyone.”