Sheriff Joe Lombardo shows a commanding lead in the Nevada gubernatorial Republican primary roughly one year out from the midterm elections, according to polling done by a pro-Lombardo PAC.
Lombardo currently shows a double-digit lead over his closest opponent, Dean Heller — a former senator and one-time Nevada Secretary of State — who he was trailing in the polls roughly four months ago.
Thirty-seven percent of the respondents said they would vote for Lombardo, while 19 percent said they would vote for Heller. However, in July, Heller was in the lead with 27 percent, against Lombardo’s 22 percent.
Meanwhile, the other Republican primary candidates in the poll are Michele Fiore with eight percent, Joey Gilbert with seven percent, John Lee with five percent, Fred Simon with three percent, Eddie Hamilton with one percent, and Guy Paul Nohra with zero percent. There was also 20 percent that were undecided.
The poll indicates that Lombardo’s increase is a “direct result” of the sheriff’s increase in name recognition since the last survey done in July. His name recognition has risen from 11 percent to 91 percent, along with his increased favorability being raised 14 percent to 67 percent.
The Tarrance Group conducted the poll on behalf of the pro-Lombardo PAC, Better Nevada, to gauge the attitudes among Republican primary voters in Nevada. The poll asked 500 “likely” Republican primary voters throughout Nevada between November 7 and 9. There was a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percent.
According to the Nevada Independent, the poll was conducted after the PAC’s six-figure advertising blitz on broadcast, cable, and radio, mainly in Reno and Las Vegas. The ad touted his law enforcement background:
“Joe Lombardo made our rights as law-abiding citizens his first priority. He’s a conservative leader, not a follower,” the ad stated after showing clips of riots from last year. “Good luck defunding the police with Sheriff Joe Lombardo as our next governor.”
Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter.
