Kamala Harris to Rally Las Vegas Casino Union Members Ahead of Nevada Gubernatorial Election

Nevada’s Culinary Union is enlisting former Vice President Kamala Harris to rally casino workers ahead of next month’s election, boosting Democratic gubernatorial nominee Aaron Ford in his bid to unseat Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris is visiting Las Vegas on Wednesday, Oct. 21, to campaign for Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford in his bid for governor. Ford, a Democrat, is challenging Republican incumbent Gov. Joe Lombardo, the former Clark County sheriff who gained national prominence following the Oct. 1, 2017, Las Vegas mass shooting.

The Culinary Union, which represents 60,000 casino and hospitality workers across Las Vegas and Reno, is hosting Harris at its headquarters on Spring Mountain Road. The event is exclusive to members of Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165.

“Governor Lombardo has done nothing to protect workers from the Trump Slump. As Lombardo runs for re-election in a state built and run by unionized hospitality workers, Culinary Union continues to demand to know why the governor stands with Trump’s harmful economic agenda instead of fighting and delivering for the working people who run Nevada’s economy.”

Can Culinary Turn the Governor’s Mansion Blue?

Recent polling puts the Nevada gubernatorial race in a dead heat, with RealClearPolitics rating the contest a “toss-up.” Culinary leaders are banking on strong turnout from union members to propel Ford to victory.

Beyond aligning with Trump, the union accuses Lombardo of failing to support workers at Station Casinos in their effort to unionize.

“[Lombardo] hasn’t done anything to stand with workers employed at Station Casinos, a company federal labor regulators found carried out ‘extensive, coercive, and unlawful misconduct’ against its own employees, including illegally firing workers and using the pandemic as cover to discriminate against workers trying to organize. The Fertittas, who control Station Casinos, each donated $1 million to a Lombardo-affiliated PAC, while Station Casinos itself donated another $1 million. They collectively were responsible for about one-third of all money raised by Lombardo in 2025,” the union said.

While Lombardo lacks Culinary’s endorsement, he enjoys backing from other key labor groups, including the Clark County Education Association—representing over 18,000 educators in the state’s largest school district—and the Professional Firefighters of Nevada. Lombardo has also been endorsed by former President Donald Trump.

Ford, meanwhile, holds the endorsement of the Nevada State Education Association.

Nevada Gubernatorial Odds

Prediction markets favor Ford ahead of the Nov. 3 election, with his shares trading at 55 cents compared to Lombardo’s 45 cents.

For down-ballot statewide offices, the Nevada Public Opinion Poll conducted by Noble Predictive Insights forecasts a potential Democratic sweep across lieutenant governor, secretary of state, treasurer, controller, and attorney general races.