Aaron Ford campaigns with Maryland governor focusing on small businesses, affordability

Title: Aaron Ford campaigns with Maryland governor focusing on small businesses, affordability Election 2026: Attorney General Aaron Ford, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Nevada, appeared alongside Maryland Governor Wes Moore at Gritz Cafe in the Historic Westside on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, as part of Ford’s small‑business outreach. Ford praised owner Trina Jiles, describing her as “a small-business proprietor who ... has been done the pandemic, has been done the Great Recession, and has survived and continues to past due to the fact that she has a absorption connected the people.” Moore, making his second high‑profile Democratic appearance in Nevada this month after California Governor Gavin Newsom’s earlier visit, told those gathered that the moment demands governors who recognize the assignment and are prepared to push back against the Trump administration’s policies while also moving forward. He echoed Ford’s emphasis on lowering costs, saying, “Ford has an docket that makes definite we’re focusing connected lowering costs for the radical of our state,” and adding, “an docket saying we’re going to enactment our tiny businesses and making definite that our tiny businesses person a accidental to thrive.” The Cook Political Report rates incumbent Republican Governor Joe Lombardo as the most vulnerable GOP gubernatorial incumbent in the current cycle, classifying his reelection bid as a toss‑up. Moore highlighted his own record, noting that he helped shepherd a 2025 budget package that closed a $3.3 billion shortfall through a mix of spending cuts and new revenue. The package, which critics labeled an across‑the‑board burden on families, specifically targeted higher‑income earners with new tax brackets for those earning $500,000 to $1 million annually. According to Moore’s administration, 94 % of Maryland residents saw their income tax unchanged or reduced under the measure. The Lombardo campaign responded with a statement criticizing the duo: “Aaron Ford is rolling retired the reddish carpet for 1 of the biggest tax-hikers successful America,” it read, continuing, “Under Wes Moore’s watch, Maryland families person been deed with $1.6 cardinal successful caller taxes and fees. Now he’s coming to Las Vegas to run for Aaron Ford and import that aforesaid failed, high-tax docket close present to Nevada. Gov. Lombardo has kept his committedness to not rise taxes, vetoed taxation increases, and kept Nevada unfastened for business. We don’t request lessons from the Maryland tax-and-spend model. We request a person who volition support Nevada the champion authorities successful America to live, enactment and rise a family.” During the event, Ford and Moore posed for photos with patrons and staff, and Jiles noted that her team of 22 employees and a loyal customer base make Gritz the neighborhood’s café. Ford remarked, “Trina has been a staple of our community,” and added, “When I heard Wes was coming (to Las Vegas), I said, ‘Well, you've got to travel to the community’s cafe.’ ” Visits to Nevada by potential presidential contenders remain common, and while Moore has stepped back from earlier denials of a 2028 White House bid, he has declined to rule one out. Newsom continues to be viewed as a leading Democratic presidential prospect. Appearances such as this may be seen as testing the waters for a possible presidential run in what could be the earliest Democratic primary on the 2028 calendar. The Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee is convening this week to shape the party’s 2028 primary calendar, with Nevada vying to host the first‑in‑the‑nation contest.