Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo endorsed Donald Trump on Thursday, saying he plans to caucus for the former president on Feb. 8.
Mr. Lombardo announced his endorsement in an interview with The Nevada Independent on Jan. 18. He told the outlet that he will vote “none of the above” in the state’s Feb. 6 primary, where the former president will not be on the ballot.
“I believe [under President Donald Trump] the economic picture was better, more predictable, more stable. And then if you look at foreign affairs, [it was] more predictable and more stable,” Mr. Lombardo said. “I think he has the ability to move us out of the doldrums associated with President [Joe] Biden.”
Mr. Lombardo dismissed his previous remarks about not making an endorsement in the 2024 presidential race. For “all practical purposes … the race is over,” he said, adding that he believes the former president is the best candidate available.
According to a recent Nevada poll by Emerson College, President Trump picked up 73 percent of support, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a distant second with 8 percent. Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie finished third and fourth, picking up 6 percent and 4 percent respectively, but the two have dropped out of the 2024 race. Eight percent said they were undecided.
In the face of two nominating contests just two days apart, the Nevada GOP will honor the winner of the caucus with delegates. President Trump and Mr. DeSantis opted for the caucus, while former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is the only active major candidate in the primary.
Currently, the governors in the four Republican early states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina have all chosen to endorse a presidential candidate. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, who announced her endorsement of Mr. DeSantis in November, recently said she will back President Trump if the former president becomes the GOP nominee.
President Trump won the Iowa Caucus by a landslide, capturing 51 percent of the vote.
By Frank Fang
