Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, pictured speaking astatine an August run lawsuit alongside erstwhile President Donald Trump, faces disapproval from the Las Vegas NAACP implicit audio successful which helium said his instrumentality enforcement vocation led him to "marginalize different communities." Photo by: Steve Marcus
By Las Vegas Sun Staff (contact)
Friday, Oct. 30, 2026 | 2 a.m.
Editor's note: Este artículo está traducido al español.
The Las Vegas subdivision of the NAACP criticized Gov. Joe Lombardo connected Wednesday implicit remarks successful which helium said helium “marginalized different communities” during his instrumentality enforcement career, calling the comments “deeply troubling, but hardly surprising.”
The NAACP said successful a quality merchandise that “the consequences of that mindset are not theoretical” for communities of color. The merchandise came six days earlier the Nov. 3 election, successful which Lombardo, a Republican, is seeking a 2nd word against Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford.
A quality website focused connected Black audiences, TheGrio, obtained audio of Lombardo’s remarks and posted it with a communicative Wednesday.
In the recording, Lombardo said that erstwhile radical get “two feet into” immoderate they bash successful life, they “tend to marginalize different communities.” He said astir of his vocation had been successful instrumentality enforcement and added, “I marginalized different communities arsenic a effect of that mindset.”
Lombardo besides said instrumentality enforcement officers “think the bulk of nine is bad” due to the fact that “that’s who they woody with connected a regular basis.”
According to TheGrio, Lombardo spoke July 2 astatine a closed-door gathering with subject veterans, wherever helium was asked however his enactment doctrine had evolved since helium near Metro Police.
The NAACP said that mentality “fueled generations of radical profiling, excessive force, and mistrust” betwixt constabulary and the communities they serve.
The NAACP cited Metro Police data.
A section study covering 2017 done 2021, portion Lombardo was sheriff, shows Black radical were the subjects successful 43% of police-related nondeadly use-of-force incidents successful 2021, up from 40% successful 2020. The stock averaged 40% implicit the 5 years.
The study cites 2019 Census Bureau estimates putting Clark County’s colonisation astatine 11% Black. The study besides shows nondeadly unit incidents roseate 22%, from 774 successful 2017 to 941 successful 2021, portion staffing for constabulary and corrections officers roseate 16%.
The NAACP said those disparities “demand accountability.” It said it is acrophobic astir what happens erstwhile the “same worldview” moves from the sheriff’s bureau to the governor’s office.
The radical described itself arsenic nonpartisan and said it expects elected officials of immoderate enactment to govern reasonably and respect civilian rights.
Ford told TheGrio that Lombardo’s “disdain for the radical who elected him to service is disqualifying.”
He said “nondeadly usage of unit against Black radical went up” nether Lombardo and that Lombardo’s efforts to marginalize communities of colour caused “severe harm to nationalist information and relationships betwixt the assemblage and instrumentality enforcement.”
Ford said that arsenic governor, helium would enactment to “rebuild spot successful each neighborhood.” If elected, Ford would beryllium Nevada’s archetypal Black governor.
Lombardo’s run told TheGrio that the proposition that helium would intentionally marginalize immoderate assemblage is “a gross misrepresentation of his grounds and leadership.”
The run said his constituent was astir “recognizing that constricted perspective, listening to others, and knowing issues beyond the scope of instrumentality enforcement.” It besides said helium “prioritized and expanded community-based policing” arsenic sheriff.
Lombardo joined Metro Police successful 1988, was elected Clark County sheriff successful 2014 and won reelection successful 2018. In a 2016 impermanent file successful the Las Vegas Sun, helium wrote that Metro Police was “recognized arsenic a exemplary bureau connected use-of-force practices.”
Lombardo was elected politician successful 2022, defeating then-Gov. Steve Sisolak, a Democrat, and took bureau Jan. 2, 2023.
Polls amusement a choky contention for governor.
The polling aggregator Pollsmax enactment Lombardo up of Ford 45.6% to 43.6% successful an mean of 16 polls. An Oct. 25 Hart Research poll, which Pollsmax lists arsenic a Democratic poll, showed Ford up 49% to 45% among 950 apt voters.
A RedBox Research canvass conducted Oct. 20-23 showed Ford up 46% to 43% among 1,407 apt voters. A canvass by Global Strategy Group, besides listed arsenic Democratic, showed Lombardo up 48% to 47% erstwhile it was conducted Oct. 8-13.
Early voting ends today. Election Day is Tuesday.
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