I used to roleplay as a Gnome when I was a kid and have been getting back into the game again. So I know my Gnome lore for the most part but I might be unaware of some of the content with the mechagnomes. The wowpedia article was pretty sparse.
When I booted up a new Gnome playthrough, I was struck by the Cataclysm-era narration that says the Gnomes have found themselves unwelcome in Ironforge, which has renewed the military offensives in Gnomeregan. The Dwarf intro gives you some similar context involving the Dark Iron Dwarf influence on Ironforge politics.
So your experience booting up a new Gnome involves an elaborate Gnomish military offensive with minimal Dwarven involvement, definitely no humans, elves, or draenei from the broader Alliance coalition. Meanwhile the Gnomes can also be seen aiding the Dwarves throughout Dun Morogh against a Troll incursion. And of course Gnomish engineers have more broadly been deployed in Azeroth’s various high fantasy wars. My point is that Gnomeregan’s allies appear to be absent while Gnomeregan’s resources for liberation are split between the broader coalition.
Going back to Ironforge, I couldn’t help but feel Tinker Town is pretty pitiful. The Dwarven District in Stormwind has pubs, homes, and a bank; it literally feels like an immigrant community within Stormwind. Tinker Town is more like a tram stop than anything. Since there’s no housing in Tinker Town, I took a look around and surmised that Gnomes make up a sizeable population in other sectors like the Mystic Ward and Commons. What that tells me is that Gnomes are well-integrated into Ironforge’s communities. And of course Gnomes are depicted as Ironforge’s closest allies, so it’s troubling that Gnomes would feel unwelcome due to shifting political pressure. If the citizens of Ironforge aren’t sticking up for their strongest allies, where too are the humans and night elves in this?
The thing about WoW lore is it kind of gets stuck in a perpetual instance, so it seems the actual effort to reclaim Gnomeregan will likely never be fruitful for the Gnomes. My last point, which is slightly off-topic, is they should really build a new Gnomeregan. Advanced as the technology in that city is, imagine how old and poorly-maintained it is after years of Trogg habitation, Cataclysmic rupturing, the planet being stabbed, and whatever weird tampering Thermaplugg has been up to. Even after the massive expenditure of the years-long military quagmire, actually cleaning the place out, repairing the existing infrastructure, and upgrading it to modern standards would cost way more money than I imagine building a whole new settlement would. I would recommend they make it fly like Dalaran, because troggs can’t get them there.