Why it matters

Nevada’s governor leads the executive branch and holds the state’s “supreme executive power.” Elected statewide every four years and limited to two terms, the governor has significant influence over the direction of state government.

The governor can sign or veto bills passed by the Legislature, call special legislative sessions, fill certain vacancies, grant pardons, and serve as commander in chief of Nevada’s military forces. The governor also appoints people to important boards, commissions, agencies, and judicial vacancies—decisions that can shape policy long after an election.

Every two years, the governor prepares Nevada’s executive budget. Because the Legislature often adjusts that proposal rather than rebuilding it from scratch, the governor has immense power to set priorities for education, health care, housing, public safety, public lands, and other vital services.

During emergencies, a governor can also exercise broad authority to protect public health and safety. The governor’s office may be small, but its decisions affect every Nevada community.

Who is Running?

Currently, the incumbent is Governor Joe Lombardo is being challenged by Current Attorney General Aaron Ford.

Here in Nevada, we know the value of open spaces. We also know that decisions about their future deserve our attention.

The federal government is proposing to repeal the Roadless Rule, which limits roadbuilding and timber harvesting in designated national forest areas. The proposal would remove a national layer of protection and give individual forest management plans a greater role. Public comments are due September 21, 2026. Read the proposal

For LEAN, our call to care for creation reaches into public policy. It asks us to consider our neighbors, respect Tribal sovereignty, and take responsibility for what we leave to future generations.

Swipe through to understand what is being proposed—and how you can speak up.

Tending creation includes paying attention to the policies that shape its future.

Submit your Public Comment.

During Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrate the generations of Latino communities whose cultures, stories, labor and leadership have helped shape Nevada, including the ways our communities care for the land, water and one another.

Latino Conservation Week reminds us that enjoying the outdoors is not equally accessible to everyone. Language barriers, transportation, cost and limited information can prevent families from experiencing Nevada’s parks, trails and public lands.

And access matters.

We cannot ask communities to protect places they have never been welcomed into or given the opportunity to experience. Meaningful time in nature can inspire a lifetime of stewardship, advocacy and care for creation.

For LEAN, this is where creation care, racial justice and community belonging intersect.

Faithful stewardship means:

Making parks and public lands welcoming to everyone
Providing bilingual and culturally responsive information
Supporting affordable, family-friendly outdoor opportunities
Including Latino voices in conservation and land-use decisions
Protecting neighborhood parks, clean water and accessible green spaces

Creation care is not only about preserving beautiful places. It is also about ensuring every family can experience the beauty, healing and joy of God’s creation.

Public lands belong to all of us—and everyone should be able to feel that they belong there.

Affordability seems to be the word of this election. But our neighbors need more than a campaign buzzword.

We heard these concerns during the 2024 election, and too many families are still waiting for relief.

Nevada’s conditions only intensify the pressure. A housing shortage, dependence on cars, fuel prices, and the cost of transporting goods all stretch household budgets. And as we have learned, economic growth does not automatically mean household security.

For neighbors on fixed incomes or without income, there is even less room to absorb rising prices. When the bills increase, something has to give: groceries, prescriptions, gas, or rent.

Long-term reform and immediate assistance belong in the same conversation. More affordable homes must be paired with what families need to remain housed, fed, healthy, and connected to work today. Our neighbors cannot put their lives on hold while waiting for relief.

A useful question for every candidate and legislator is: “What will your proposal change in a household’s monthly budget, who will benefit, and when will relief arrive?”

For LEAN, affordability is about whether our neighbors can meet their basic needs and build a future with dignity. That is a commitment we must carry beyond Election Day.

Nevada experienced its warmest August on record, while the Southwest’s daytime temperatures averaged nearly 6 degrees above normal.

El Niño and unusually warm oceans contributed—but scientists emphasize that these conditions are unfolding against a hotter baseline created by human-caused climate change.

And hotter temperatures do more than make summer uncomfortable.

• Warmer air pulls moisture from Nevada’s soil and vegetation.
• Water evaporates faster, placing greater pressure on rivers and reservoirs.
• Drier landscapes increase wildfire danger.
• Parched soil may be unable to absorb sudden rain, increasing flash-flood risks.
• Families face higher cooling bills and greater danger when housing lacks reliable air conditioning.

Climate change is not only a creation-care issue. It is also a housing, health, water, energy and economic-justice issue.

The people most affected are often those with the fewest resources to adapt: older adults, children, outdoor workers, unhoused neighbors, people with chronic illnesses and families already struggling to pay their utility bills.

Nevada needs policies that:

• Protect residents from utility shutoffs during extreme heat
• Establish safe indoor-temperature standards for rental housing
• Expand accessible cooling centers and urban shade
• Strengthen protections for outdoor workers
• Improve wildfire, flood and emergency-alert systems
• Require major industrial developments—including data centers—to account for their water, electricity and climate impacts
• Continue Nevada’s transition toward cleaner, affordable energy

Record-breaking heat is becoming less exceptional. Our public policies must catch up with our changing climate.

Caring for creation means caring for the people who bear the greatest burden when our climate changes.

Seek Justice. Show Love.