Lombardo Worked to Stack State Ethics Commission Before Censure and Fine Vote

Lombardo Worked to Stack State Ethics Commission Before Censure and Fine Vote

“Emails obtained by The Nevada Independent indicate that Lombardo made the new appointments despite a former Republican commissioner expressing interest in serving another term”

New reporting from the Nevada Independent reveals that Gov. Joe Lombardo ignored a request for reappointment from a sitting member of the Nevada Ethics Commission to instead appoint a close ally just days before the commission decided whether he had committed multiple ethics violations while campaigning for governor.

This summer, Lombardo was hit with both a censure and a $20,000 fine — one of the largest in state history — after the ethics commission found he willingly committed multiple ethics violations to benefit his campaign by producing dozens of campaign materials featuring his taxpayer-funded sheriff’s badge and uniform. In the decision, the board voted 4-2 against Lombardo, with the only two dissenting votes cast by the appointees Lombardo seated on the commission just days earlier.

“Despite what his actions suggest, Gov. Joe Lombardo is not above the law,” said DGA National Press Secretary Devon Cruz. “Nevadans deserve better than a governor who violates the public trust and breaks the law to serve his own political ambitions, then tries to shirk accountability by stacking the panel overseeing his case with his political allies.”

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