Lombardo endorses former North Las Vegas mayor in congressional race

Gov. Joe Lombardo on Wednesday endorsed former North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee in his congressional bid.

Lee announced his candidacy for Nevada’s 4th Congressional District, a seat held by Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford, in October, joining retired Air Force Lieutenant Col. David Flippo in the Republican primary field.

In his endorsement, Lombardo said as the mayor of North Las Vegas, Lee turned a city on the verge of bankruptcy into a thriving destination for businesses.

“I look forward to working with him when he’s elected to return more of our land to state and local control, improve our economy, and keep communities safer,” Lombardo said.

Lombardo’s endorsement comes after the two Republicans both vied for the Republican gubernatorial nomination in 2022, taking swings at each other throughout the election. In April 2022, Lombardo criticized Lee on X, formerly Twitter, for his past as a Democrat.

Lee came in fourth place in the primary, with less than 8 percent of the votes.

Contact Jessica Hill at jehill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jess_hillyeah on X.