Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Election 2014:

Biden, DNC chair to campaign in Las Vegas for congressional hopeful

Biden Rally in Vegas

Leila Navidi

Vice President Joe Biden greets the crowd after a rally at the Culinary Academy in Las Vegas on Thursday, October 18, 2012.

Vice President Joe Biden will be in Las Vegas next week, in part to stump for congressional candidate Erin Bilbray.

Bilbray’s campaign confirmed Biden would be a special guest at an invitation-only campaign rally July 23. The rally will be at 1 p.m. at Kona Ice, a shaved-ice company that recognized by VEGAS Inc in 2013 for community stewardship.

The vice president’s visit is the highlight of a big week for Bilbray, the Democratic nominee running to unseat incumbent Rep. Joe Heck, a Republican, for the district representing Henderson and Boulder City.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., and chair of the Democratic National Committee, will headline a Women for Bilbray campaign event Tuesday, Bilbray’s campaign confirmed.

The VIP visitors’ trips to Las Vegas come as Bilbray’s campaign is challenging Heck to at least four debates before the November election. Outside groups are also starting to get involved in this election season’s most-contested congressional race in Nevada.

Coalitions of labor groups have released both Spanish-language radio and television ads this week attempting to tie Heck to House Republican leaders who haven’t brought immigration reform to a vote, despite the fact Heck has called for immigration reform legislation.

On the Republican side, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has bought ads for Heck, part of a $3 million national campaign to support moderate Republicans.

The Washington Post rates Heck’s seat as 98 percent safe, but the district has also ping-ponged between Republicans and Democrats through the years.

It’s not immediately clear what else Biden will be doing while he is in Nevada. His office has not yet responded to a request for comment.

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