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Matthew Winterhawk
From Ballotpedia
Matthew Winterhawk (Republican Party) is running for election for Governor of Nevada. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.
Winterhawk completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Matthew Winterhawk was born in Kansas City, Kansas. He earned a high school diploma from Benson Union High School. He graduated from Johnson County Community College in 2001. His career experience includes co-founding the SmartSlaps™ Foundation and managing Wujia RA Limited, a family-owned music and media label.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: Nevada gubernatorial election, 2026
Note: At this time, Ballotpedia is combining all declared candidates for this election into one list under a general election heading. As primary election dates are published, this information will be updated to separate general election candidates from primary candidates as appropriate.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
General election for Governor of Nevada
Aaron Ford and Matthew Winterhawk are running in the general election for Governor of Nevada on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Aaron Ford (D) | |
 | Matthew Winterhawk (R)  | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
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Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Matthew Winterhawk completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Winterhawk's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I’m Winterhawk a father, husband, and Nevadan who’s tired of the corruption and theater in politics. I’m not a career politician; I’m a builder, a doer, and someone who knows what it’s like to live under the weight of broken systems. I’ve started businesses, helped schools directly, and fought for community-based solutions when others just talked. I’m running for governor to restore truth, efficiency, and accountability in our government. I will create the Department of Government Efficiency on Day One, so Nevadans know exactly where their tax dollars go. I’m also a strong advocate for real education not indoctrination and I will fight to protect our land, resources, and public safety. I represent everyday Nevadans, not lobbyists. I’m not running to gain power. I’m running to give it back to the people. Battle Born. Nevada First. Always.
- Efficiency and Transparency from Day One. I’ll launch a Department of Government Efficiency to eliminate waste, expose backroom deals, and track every tax dollar spent. Nevadans deserve to know where their money is going no more loopholes, no more fog. We’ll light up every corner of government spending and bring real accountability to Carson City.
- Real Education, Not Indoctrination. Our kids deserve schools that teach them how to think not what to think. I will prioritize education that builds skills, values, and real-world knowledge while keeping politics and outside agendas out of the classroom. Parents and teachers should be the foundation of our education system, not activist consultants.
- Nevada-Owned Future. I will fight to protect our land, water, and resources from foreign investors and federal overreach. Our sovereignty must come first. Nevada shouldn’t be up for sale and I’ll make sure our future stays in the hands of Nevadans.
I’m deeply passionate about government reform, education, and protecting state sovereignty. I believe in empowering local communities, ending political theater, and exposing wasteful spending. I’m driven to protect children from indoctrination, ensure parents have a voice in schools, and return accountability to every department. I’m equally focused on restoring trust in law enforcement and defending Nevada’s rights over our land and water. Our state is not a playground for outside interests it’s our home, and I’ll treat it that way.
George Carlin, my father, and Ricky Gervais sadly, only one of the three is still here. Carlin taught me to question everything, to cut through the lies with humor and brutal honesty. My father taught me to work hard, stay grounded, and never let pride get in the way of doing what’s right. Ricky Gervais? He reminds me to keep laughing, even when the truth stings. Each of them stood for honesty over popularity, and that’s exactly the kind of example I want to follow.
“Common Sense” by Thomas Paine because truth is timeless. Also, “Schoolhouse Rock!” believe it or not, it taught more civics than most public schools do today. If we don’t teach power to the people, we lose the people’s power.
Integrity, transparency, and backbone. I don’t care if you make mistakes I care if you lie about them. The people want real, flawed, honest leadership. That’s what I am. And that’s who I’ll always be.
I don’t speak in rehearsed talking points. I speak from experience. I’ve worked with my hands, built my own path, raised a family, and stood up when others stayed silent. I’m relentless when it comes to the truth even when it’s uncomfortable. I don’t owe favors to lobbyists, I’m not backed by billionaires, and I won’t play politics with people’s lives. What I bring is integrity, grit, and the courage to say what needs to be said not what polls well. I’m not here to impress the system. I’m here to fix it.
The governor is the people’s last line of defense. Your job is to protect freedoms, cut corruption, ensure safety, and give every citizen a fair shot. It’s not about photo ops or fake promises it’s about results.
I want to restore what we were all promised as kids truth, humanity, accountability, and a sense of ownership over our actions. I want to help bring back a culture where law and order mean something, where failures are owned, and where leaders answer to the people. My goal is to leave this world better than I found it not just for my sake, but so my kids can carry the boulders when I’m gone, with pride and purpose, knowing their father didn’t fold, didn’t sell out, and didn’t stay silent.
I’ll never forget 9/11. I was on my way to work and stopped to fill up my gas tank. I didn’t notice anything unusual at first until the pump, mid-fill, jumped from a dollar-something per gallon to hundreds. I walked inside, told the clerk his machine was broken. He looked at me and said, “You didn’t see the news?” We stood there me, the gas station owner, and a few strangers—glued to the screen, watching in horror as the towers fell. That moment sticks with me because everything changed our country, our unity, our trust. It reminded me how fragile peace is, and how important leadership becomes when everything’s falling apart. I was only 18
My first job was in the summer when I was just 9 years old, working insulation jobs in sweltering Midwest attics. It was rural Kansas, 90% humidity, and no shortcuts just grit, sweat, and long days under a blazing roofline. It wasn’t legal, it wasn’t easy, but it taught me the value of hard work, sacrifice, and earning every dollar by showing up when it matters most.
I’ve read too many to pick just one but as a kid, no author hit me like Shel Silverstein. His words were simple but deep, playful but wise. Books like Where the Sidewalk Ends and The Giving Tree taught me that imagination, emotion, and truth can all live in the same sentence. That foundation shaped the way I see the world through honesty, wonder, and the belief that even the smallest stories can carry the biggest truths.
Honestly, I wouldn’t be anyone but myself even in a fictional world. I’ve never relied on anyone else to define me, and I don’t need a fantasy to feel powerful or important. Fiction has its place, but I’ve always believed that you can’t believe what you know, and you can’t know what you believe. I’d rather face the truth head-on than escape into someone else’s story. My story’s enough and it’s just getting started.
“Where Is the Love?” by the Black Eyed Peas. I keep wondering where is the music like that today? Songs that actually said something, challenged the world, and called for unity. That track hit different, and it still does. It’s a reminder of what we’ve lost and what we need to fight to get back.
My passion and blunt honesty. I don’t sugarcoat, and sometimes that rubs people the wrong way. I speak from the heart with expletives if necessary but always with good intentions. You may not like how I say it, but you can’t deny what I said. I’ve been avoided my whole life because I reflect uncomfortable truths like a mirror. No filter, just facts. It’s a challenge, but it’s also why I’ll never be part of the political machine.
Protecting our land, restoring education, and ending political waste. We need a governor who isn’t afraid to say “no” to DC and “yes” to Nevadans. That’s what I’ll do.
The governor should be hands-on and fully involved. The people expect leadership that can read a budget, not just sign one. I believe in direct oversight, full transparency, and open public reporting of all state spending. My administration will launch a Department of Government Efficiency to ensure that every tax dollar is justified, traceable, and beneficial to Nevadans not hidden behind lobbyists and bureaucracy.
Line-item vetoes are a surgical tool not a weapon. I’ll use them to cut waste, kill corrupt pork, and protect the public from bloated spending. But every cut I make will come with a public explanation. No backroom decisions. No hidden motives. Just fiscal responsibility and honesty.
Mutual respect, not mutual favors. The governor should work with legislators of both parties to get things done but not at the cost of accountability. My door will always be open, but so will the cameras. I will collaborate when it benefits Nevadans and push back hard when it doesn’t.
Nevadans don’t quit. We’ve built this state through grit, independence, and unity across our differences. From our desert towns to our mountain ranges, from our veterans to our visionaries we stand proud. I love our spirit, our heritage, and our refusal to be anyone’s puppet.
Federal overreach, political corruption, and mismanaged growth. Nevada risks being swallowed by interests that don’t represent us from foreign land buyers to federal agencies trying to regulate our rights. We must protect our water, schools, safety, and economic freedom or we risk losing what makes Nevada worth fighting for.
“I’m not mad I’m right. You mistake my passion for feelings.”
That one always sticks with me. People confuse conviction with anger, or honesty with hostility. But the truth doesn’t always come with a smile sometimes it comes with fire. And that fire is what makes real change possible.
That one always sticks with me. People confuse conviction with anger, or honesty with hostility. But the truth doesn’t always come with a smile sometimes it comes with fire. And that fire is what makes real change possible.
Only in real, clearly defined emergencies natural disasters, public infrastructure collapse, or a legitimate threat to public safety. Emergency powers should come with expiration clauses, full transparency, and legislative checks. No permanent mandates. No political abuse. Ever again.
I have and various citizens on social media.
I’m building a Department of Government Efficiency for exactly this reason. Taxpayers should know how every single dollar is spent not buried in PDFs or hidden behind bureaucracy. We’ll make corruption uncomfortable again.
I support improving access and transparency in the ballot initiative process. I’d allow secure digital signature collection to empower more citizen participation while requiring clear summaries and full financial disclosure of who’s funding both sides. This process belongs to the people not to PACs and consultants.
It means you serve every Nevadan not just donors, not just your base. It means you’re on the hook when things go wrong, and you give credit when others do right. You are not above the people you’re beneath them, lifting them up.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Campaign finance information for this candidate is not yet available from OpenSecrets. That information will be published here once it is available.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 31, 2025
