Politics
Harris urges Culinary Union members to turn Nevada campaign work into votes
Former Vice President Kamala Harris rallied hundreds of Culinary Workers Union Local 226 members in Las Vegas on Oct. 21, urging them to mobilize voters for Nevada Democrats before the Nov. 3 election. She endorsed Aaron Ford for governor and also campaigned for attorney general candidate Nicole Cannizzaro during a separate stop.
LAS VEGAS — Former Vice President Kamala Harris urged Culinary Workers Union Local 226 members to turn their organizing into votes as Nevada Democrats entered the final stretch before the Nov. 3 election.
Harris spoke to hundreds of union members at the union’s Las Vegas headquarters on Wednesday, Oct. 21, alongside Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford, who is running for governor, and U.S. Rep. Dina Titus. With 13 days until Election Day, Harris endorsed Ford, criticized President Donald Trump’s administration and called on people to act on their political frustrations.
“This is the moment where the power of the people reigns,” Harris said.
She pointed to canvassing, texting and other organizing as ways to make that power felt. Culinary Union President Diana Valles said members had put in thousands of hours canvassing in recent weeks. She credited the union’s members, rather than visiting politicians, with determining the outcome.
“Our people, our members knocking on doors one by one,” Valles said. “The people are what’s going to make the difference.”
Titus called the union a crucial part of Democratic campaigns in Nevada, saying candidates rely on members’ door-to-door outreach. Union member Cynthia Trejon said she encounters people who feel detached from politics or are afraid to vote, and that sharing her own experiences has persuaded some to reconsider.
Harris also visited Weera Thai’s Shanghai Plaza location to campaign for Nicole Cannizzaro, the Democratic nominee for attorney general. Cannizzaro, a Nevada state senator and majority leader since 2019, is facing Republican Adriana Guzmán Fralick. Harris, a former attorney general, described the office as important to pursuing justice and said Cannizzaro was the right person for the job.
Cannizzaro said Harris wanted to support candidates across Nevada’s ballot and encourage voters to turn out.
The visit came amid a broader wave of high-profile political campaigning in the state. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren campaigned at UNLV on Oct. 20. Rep. Ro Khanna, voting rights activist Stacey Abrams and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were expected to visit later in the week. Republicans also sent campaign surrogates, including House Speaker Mike Johnson and Education Secretary Linda McMahon.
For Culinary Union members, the visits were part of a ground campaign built on direct contact with voters. Valles said members’ work would ultimately matter more than the presence of national figures.