Sheriff Joe Lombardo gives details to the media on a Black Lives Matter protest that left one officer critically injured and one protester dead in Las Vegas, Tuesday, June 2, 2020.
Friday, May 21, 2021 | 6:05 p.m.
Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo has begun building out a campaign for what appears to be a likely run for governor next year.
A person familiar with Lombardo’s thinking who was not authorized to speak publicly told The Associated Press that Lombardo is leaning toward running, has hired political consultants and will make an announcement in the next month or so.
Former Lt. Gov. Mark Hutchison, who served from 2015 to 2019, said he will be serving as chairman of Lombardo's campaign.
Lombardo did not immediately respond to telephone and text messages from the AP on Friday.
Lombardo would face North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee, who announced his campaign Monday, in a Republican primary.
They are vying to take on incumbent Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak, who was elected in 2018.
Lee said that he made a courtesy phone call to Lombardo letting him know he would be running and Lombardo returned the favor and said he would run.
“He called me up maybe two weeks later and said, ‘Hey, I want to give you the same courtesy that I think you gave me, and I’m going to run too.' And I said let's go," Lee said.
Candidates' declaration forms are not filed until early next year. But candidates would typically start fundraising this year or earlier if they are planning a campaign.
Northern Nevada Rep. Mark Amodei, a Republican, said Friday that he's still weighing whether to run for governor and did not have a timeline for when he might make a decision.
“We're just going through our process,” Amodei said.
He said he spoke with former U.S. Sen. Dean Heller a week ago, who told Amodei he was interested in running for governor.
Heller did not return a text message seeking comment.
Republican former Attorney General Adam Laxalt, who ran for governor against Sisolak in 2018, has been considered a potential candidate for governor next year or a U.S. Senate candidate challenging incumbent Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto.
Laxalt said in a statement Friday that he was humbled by the encouragement he has received from Nevadans to run for another public office but did not say if he would enter the governor's or Senate race.
“I will continue to have these conversations with friends and supporters, and I will make a decision regarding a future run at a time most appropriate for my family and me,” he said.
Sisolak was elected in 2018 by 4 percentage points.
Associated Press writer Ken Ritter in Las Vegas contributed to this report.
