The presidential race isn’t the only key contest on Washoe County ballots.
Here’s a quick rundown of the top federal, state and local elections and why they matter.
Also included are links to short Q&As with the candidates as well as supporters and opponents of ballot initiatives facing Nevada voters.
Election Day is Nov. 5. Early voting runs from Oct. 19 to Nov. 1.
Need to register or get details on your own voter registration? Visit washoecounty.gov/voters or nvsos.gov/votersearch.
U.S. Senate: Brown v. Rosen
Certain to be Nevada’s most expensive contest this election cycle, the race for U.S. Senate pits Democratic incumbent Jacky Rosen against Republican Sam Brown.
Nevada is one of only four Senate races in the nation that are considered toss-ups – where either the Democrat or the Republican candidate could win. July polls show Rosen with a slight edge over Brown of 2 to 7 percentage points.
Six nonpartisan or minor party candidates could siphon away critical support from the frontrunners in a tight race: Janine Hansen of the Independent American Party, Libertarian Chris Cunningham, and nonpartisans J.J. Destin, Chris Mazlo, Allen Rheinhart and Edmond V. Uehling.
• Why it matters: Democrats have majority control of the U.S. Senate by the slimmest of margins: 48 seats are held by Democrats and 49 by Republicans, but the three independent senators tend to vote with the Democrats, giving them a 51-to-49 edge.
If Brown wins, that would mean a 50-50 tie. At that point, the vice president casts the deciding vote when the Senate tries to pass legislation. Which party’s vice president will do this is obviously not certain yet, but former President Donald Trump has shown a consistent lead in Nevada polling.
• Learn more about the candidates and their top issues here, plus read a Q&A with both.
U.S. House: Amodei v. Kidd
Nevada’s Second Congressional District, which covers the top half of the state, has been represented by Republican Mark Amodei since 2011.
He faces Greg Kidd, a wealthy nonpartisan who lives at Lake Tahoe and seeded his own campaign with $1.5 million – more than Amodei has raised.
Kidd portrays himself as a pro-choice fiscal conservative. His nonpartisan label may help because Democrats and nonpartisans make up a majority of the district’s voters, though incumbency and name recognition are definite assets for Amodei.
• Why it matters: If Amodei loses, Nevada will have no Republican representation in the U.S. House or Senate (unless Brown prevails over Rosen). Nevada has not been without a Republican in Congress in more than 20 years.
• Learn more about the candidates and their top issues here. Q&A’s with the candidates are coming soon.
Nevada Legislature: La Rue Hatch v. Sande
Perhaps the most consequential Legislature race in Northern Nevada is Assembly District 25. It includes parts of west and southwest Reno.
The seat is currently held by Democrat Selena La Rue Hatch. She’ll face Republican Diane Sande, who is getting big support from Gov. Joe Lombardo.
• Why it matters: Lombardo, a Republican, unleashed a record 75 vetoes in the Nevada Legislature’s last session. Democrats want a supermajority so they can override his vetoes.
A supermajority in Nevada is when one party has two-thirds or more of Assembly and Senate seats, giving it power to pass laws and policies without the governor’s approval.
Democrats currently hold exactly two-thirds of all Assembly seats, and are one seat shy of a supermajority in the Senate. Republicans hope to flip a few Senate seats, but at the very least not lose any they now hold.
And they want to break the Democrats’ supermajority in the Assembly as a backstop. That’s why they’re focusing on helping Sande prevail over La Rue Hatch.
• Learn more about the candidates and their top issues here. Q&A’s with the candidates are coming soon.
Washoe County Commission: Berkbigler v. Hill
Washoe County’s District 1 will see former Washoe County Commissioner Marsha Berkbigler go up against current Washoe County Commissioner Alexis Hill.
Hill – a Democrat and commission chair – unseated the Republican Berkbigler in 2020, 55% to 45%.
• Why it’s important: If Berkbigler wins, it would put four Republicans on the five-member board, making the commission more conservative. This could especially lead to a change in direction over how election processes are handled.
• Learn more about the candidates here. Q&As with the candidates are coming soon.
Other Northern Nevada races
• Reno City Council: Learn more about the candidates in the four Reno City Council races and their top issues for Ward 1 with Kathleen Taylor and Frank Perez here, Ward 3 with Miguel Martinez and Denise Myer here, Ward 5 with Devon Reese and Brian Cassidy here, and Ward 6 with Brandi Anderson and Tom Heck here. Q&A’s are coming soon.
• Sparks City Council: Learn more about the candidates in the two Sparks City Council races and their top issues for Ward 3 with Paul Anderson and Brad Fitch here, and Ward 5 with Kristopher Dahir and Joe Rodriguez here. Q&A’s are coming soon.
• School board: Learn more about the candidates Diane Nicolet and Perry Rosenstein and their top issues in the District G at-large Washoe County School Board race here. A Q&A with the candidates is coming soon.
• Judicial races: Learn more about candidates Cotter C. Conway and Jennifer Richards for Reno/Verdi Justice of the Peace and Robert DeLong and Jesse B. Kalter for Sparks Municipal Court here. Q&A’s are coming soon.
Nevada 2024 ballot measure: ranked-choice voting
Of the seven ballot measures before Nevada voters, one will upend all elections going forward.
It would allow ranked-choice voting where there’s a single primary race open to all candidates regardless of party. The top 5 vote-getters move ahead, and voters rank their candidates from 1 to 5 in the general election. The initiative already won in 2022 and just needs to win again in November for final approval.
• Why it’s important: It would open up primaries so that nonpartisans – who are Nevada’s largest voting bloc – can vote in major races, and it would mean that candidates may need to appeal to a broader range of voters.
• A deeper looking coming soon for ranked choice voting.
Nevada 2024 ballot measure: voter ID
A second ballot measure would also fundamentally change Nevada elections by requiring that voters present a photo ID when voting in person, and if voting by mail, they must give the last four digits of their Nevada driver’s license or Social Security number.
• Why it’s important: Supporters say it would increase trust in elections, while opponents say it would disenfranchise voters who don’t have photo ID.
• A deeper looking coming soon for voter ID.
Nevada 2024 ballot measure: abortion constitutional amendment
And a third ballot initiative would protect the right to an abortion up to 24 weeks. This is already Nevada law, but it would add the language to the state constitution, making it much harder to overturn.
• Why it’s important: Whenever abortion is on the ballot, it tends to inspire less conservative voters to participate in the election overall, helping more centrist and liberal candidates.
• A deeper looking coming soon for the abortion amendment.
• Other ballot initiatives: Looks into the other ballot measures are coming soon for Question 1 on the constitutional status of the Board of Regents, Question 2 on updating language on physical disabilities in the Nevada Constitution, Question 4 on updating language related to slavery in the Nevada Constitution, and Question 6 about getting rid of sales tax on diapers.
Note: We did not cover contests where only one person is running or candidates in federal races who did not raise campaign funds.
Mark Robison is the state politics reporter for the Reno Gazette Journal, with occasional forays into other topics. Email comments to mrobison@rgj.com or comment on Mark’s Greater Reno Facebook page.
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Publish date : 2024-09-16 13:00:00
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