Live blog: Notes, news and analysis from Nevada’s primary election

Staff and wire reports

Published Tuesday, June 14, 2016 | 5:25 p.m.

Updated Tuesday, June 14, 2016 | 10:40 p.m.

10:30 p.m.

Hugs and cheers abounded at Born and Raised in southwest Las Vegas as friends and family congratulated businessman Danny Tarkanian on his Republican primary victory in Nevada’s 3rd Congressional District.

“I’ve never been in a race where I felt more confident we would prevail at the end,” Tarkanian said in an interview. “I’ve had wonderful volunteers.”

Tarkanian said he was a little worried about the $2 million in outside spending on state Sen. Michael Roberson’s campaign in the last few days, but the results Tuesday night showed he prevailed. He acknowledged that the race between him and Roberson was “definitely a bitter campaign,” and said that Roberson’s attacks had been unfair against him during the race.

Tarkanian will face Henderson synagogue leader and first-time candidate Jacky Rosen in November. He called Rosen the “establishment candidate” who was been “hand-picked by Harry Reid himself.”

“I’m the anti-establishment candidate that’s fighting Washington D.C.,” Tarkanian said. “And I think that will resonate with voters."

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10:25 p.m.

A rural Nevada assemblyman under fire for supporting last year's tax increase has survived a Republican primary that included a challenge from a supporter of southern Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy.

James Oscarson of Pahrump was among the few rural Republicans who voted in favor of Gov. Brian Sandoval's packages of tax hikes and education initiatives.

Oscarson defeated Rusty Stanberry and Bundy-backer Tina Trenner in Tuesday night's primary election in Assembly District 36. It covers parts of Clark, Lincoln and Nye counties.

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10:23 p.m.

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid issued a statement saying he was confident Democrats "are going to win up and down the ballot in November."

“Catherine Cortez Masto will become the first Latina United States senator in history," the statement said. "Catherine was an outstanding attorney general with a record of bipartisan accomplishments holding sex traffickers and the big banks accountable. Her opponent has pledged allegiance to Donald Trump — which is no surprise since Congressman Heck’s extreme views are indistinguishable from Trump’s. Heck wants to deport DREAMers, end birthright citizenship, and unravel the economic progress of the last seven years. Congressman Heck will lose.

“Nevada is also poised to make history when we elect Ruben Kihuen as our state’s first Latino to serve in the House of Representatives. Cresent Hardy should never have been elected to the 4th Congressional District in 2014, and we’ll make sure he doesn’t return. Democrats will also send community leader Jacky Rosen to represent our 3rd Congressional District. Jacky will beat Danny Tarkanian because a failed perennial candidate who can’t manage his own money should have nothing to do with growing Southern Nevada’s economy.

“Democrats are also in an excellent position to reclaim our majorities in the Nevada Senate and Assembly. Our state deserves a legislature that will stand up for the middle class, not special interests and the wealthy few.

“Nevada Democrats believe that comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship is essential. We believe that clean energy creates good-paying jobs that can’t be shipped overseas, and we should do everything to foster its development. We stopped nuclear waste from being dumped in Nevada, we blocked failed Republican attempts to revive Yucca Mountain, and we remain vigilant in this fight. We believe that women should be paid the same as men for doing the same job. Nevada Democrats will fight for working men and women so they have a fair and livable wage, and we will reject attempts to weaken workers’ rights. We believe our public lands should be protected for future generations.

“Nevada’s diversity is our strength, and Democrats up and down the ballot represent every corner of our great state. This is Nevada’s new generation of leaders – and they are why we will win in November.”

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10:10 p.m.

Danny Tarkanian has beaten Michael Roberson in a hotly contested Republican primary for the southern Nevada House seat held by Rep. Joe Heck.

The 3rd Congressional District race was one of the most heated in the primary cycle, with candidates trading negative ads that called each other "Dirty Danny Tarkanian" and "Two-Faced Michael Roberson."

Tarkanian is a businessman and son of the late UNLV basketball coach Danny Tarkanian. He's made five unsuccessful bids for office in the past and has criticized Roberson for helping pass a $1.4 billion tax package last year.

Roberson is a lawyer who's in the middle of his second term in the state Senate.

Other Republican candidates included Assemblywoman Michele Fiore.

Tarkanian will face Democratic synagogue leader Jacky Rosen in November. Moments after Tarkanian was declared the winner, Rosen issued a statement.

"My ultra-conservative opponent Danny Tarkanian is an enthusiastic supporter of Donald Trump, and he has repeatedly refused to condemn Trump’s bigotry, sexism and lack of judgment," the statement said. "And whether it’s wanting to privatize Social Security, block immigration reform or restrict women’s access to health care, Danny Tarkanian is too reckless and too out of touch to represent this district. I look forward to winning this seat in November so that Southern Nevada families have a voice fighting for them in Washington."

In other results, Chip Evans won a three-way Democratic primary to oppose Rep. Mark Amodei in Nevada congressional district, and speaker of last year's Nevada State Assembly became the latest Republican incumbent to survive a primary challenge attacking his vote for Gov. Brian Sandoval's tax package and education initiatives.

Clark County Republican John Hambrick defeated Clayton Hurst tonight in the GOP primary in Assembly District 2.

Two other Clark County Republicans who backed Sandoval also won their primaries — longtime Assemblywoman Melissa Woodbury and Paul Anderson, who served as majority leader in 2015.

In a key state Senate race between former Assembly members in the Summerlin area, tax supporter Erv Nelson lost to Victoria Seaman — a loud critic of the spending plan.

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9:53 p.m.

With 49 percent of precincts reporting, Clark County Commissioner Marilyn Kirkpatrick held a nearly 2-to-1 lead over Las Vegas City Councilman Steve Ross for Kirkpatrick's council seat — 65.66 percent to 34.34 percent.

"Tonight, the voters of District B nominated someone who has fought her entire life for the children and families of Southern Nevada," Nevada Democratic Party Chair Roberta Lange said in a release. "Marilyn Kirkpatrick is a champion for working families and a progressive leader who has fought for equality for every Nevadan. Marilyn was a leader in the fight to increase education funding and stopping the Republican attacks on the paychecks of working families during the last legislative session. Marilyn is a PTA mom who always puts Nevada kids first and has never forgotten where she came from. She is my friend, and I could not be prouder that Marilyn will continue to improve the lives of Nevada families on the Clark County Commission.”

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9:45 p.m.

Speaking to a crowd of about 200 union workers clad in red shirts and supporters, CD4 Democratic primary winner Ruben Kihuen took aim at Republican opponent Cresent Hardy and presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump, saying he'd do a better job "looking out for the working class," than his right-wing adversaries.

The 28-year Las Vegas resident also thanked his mentor, Sen. Harry Reid, for "giving him a chance" in politics, and to former President Bill Clinton for his endorsement.

He called his mother "the reason I work so hard," before introducing his father, three siblings and girlfriend.

Speaking with the Sun after his speech, Kihuen said he ran a "more organized" campaign than that of CD4 Democrats Susie Lee and Lucy Flores, one of his "main reasons" for victory.

Kihuen said he plans to celebrate the victory on Tuesday night before returning to the campaign trail first thing on Wednesday morning.

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9:35 p.m.

State Sen. Ruben Kihuen has won the Democratic primary in the U.S. House district that includes North Las Vegas and rural central Nevada. Kihuen topped former state Assemblywoman Lucy Flores, philanthropist Susie Lee and a handful of lesser-known candidates in the hard-fought race. Kihuen will face Republican Cresent Hardy in November.

Hardy won the seat in 2014 during a conservative "red wave," even though the 4th Congressional District has a wide Democratic registration advantage.

Sen. Harry Reid, President Bill Clinton and the powerful Culinary Union worked to help Kihuen. Bernie Sanders sent fundraising emails on behalf of Flores that helped her pull in hundreds of thousands of dollars from his supporters.

Other candidates included Morse Arberry, Brandon Casutt, Dan Rolle, Mike Schaefer and Rodney Smith.

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9:30 p.m.

Incumbent Republican Assemblyman Paul Anderson of Clark County is headed back to the Nevada Legislature to serve a third term.

Anderson, who served as the Assembly majority leader last year, emerged as the winner Tuesday night in the GOP primary against Leonard Foster and Steve Sanson in District 13.

It effectively means Anderson has been re-elected because there are no Democrats or other splinter candidates running for the seat in November's general election.

He was among the incumbent Republicans some right-wing, anti-tax groups had targeted for defeat because he supported Gov. Brian Sandoval's tax package and education initiatives.

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9:09 p.m.

CD4 Democratic candidate Ruben Kihuen, at Culinary 226, delivered a victory speech after reports that the AP had declared him the winner in the hotly contested race against Lucy Flores and Susie Lee. Minutes later, however, the Associated Press announced that it had not called the race for him.

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9:05 p.m.

Victoria Seaman has won the Republican nomination for a key state Senate seat in Clark County in a battle between two former Nevada Assembly members.

Seaman defeated Erv Nelson Tuesday night in the GOP primary in Senate District 6, which includes the Summerlin area.

Seaman was a vocal critic of Gov. Brian Sandoval's tax package and education initiatives, while Nelson supported them.

Theirs' was one of the uglier contests among several legislative primary races pitting Sandoval-backers against anti-tax crusaders.

“We went door to door, met with people, and kept our message on policy almost through the whole campaign,” Seaman said in a phone interview. “I think that people really saw through all the negative ads and desperation and really looked at the stuff I accomplished in Carson City.

One of the most significant issues in the race was the $1.4 billion tax package passed by the Legislature in 2014. Nelson had voted for the package, while Seaman voted against it.

Asked for comment on the results of the race, Nelson’s campaign manager said that Nelson was spending “much needed” time with his family tonight.

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9 p.m.

Longtime Republican Assemblywoman Melissa Woodbury has held off a GOP challenger in a key legislative primary in Clark County.

Woodbury defeated Swadeep Nigam on Tuesday night to move to November's general election in the 23rd Assembly District.

Woodbury voted in favor last year of Gov. Brian Sandoval's tax package and education initiatives. She won an endorsement from the popular Republican governor.

Nigam is a local Republican activist who works as an analyst with the Las Vegas Valley Water District. Sandoval earlier appointed him to the Nevada Equal Rights Commission.

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8:54 p.m.

Reached by phone Wednesday evening, Rep. Joe Heck said it was “humbling” to receive the support of so many Nevadans, adding he had spent the last several months traveling to all 17 counties across the state. Heck and Democratic candidate Catherine Cortez Masto were declared the winners early on in their bid for the Senate seat being vacated by Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid after his current term.

“That’s what’s helped us in those areas,” Heck said. “They’ve been able to talk with me directly, express what their concerns are about the future of our state and our nation.”

Heck described Cortez Masto as “(Harry) Reid 2.0” and said she was not who Nevadans would want after “eight years of Barack Obama and 30 years of Harry Reid.”

Asked whether he saw the Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump as an obstacle to his campaign, Heck pivoted to talking about his “very set series of issues” that Nevadans have expressed to him — good paying jobs, access to quality healthcare and a solid education, among those issues.

Heck said he was celebrating the win in Washington D.C. just before midnight by reading through bills that the House will vote on tomorrow.

Catherine Cortez Masto, in a statement, said she was “extremely thankful” to Nevadans for supporting her candidacy.

She said she would build on her record “(solving) problems for Nevada,” like combatting human trafficking and helping secure relief for Nevadans going through foreclosures.

She also drew comparisons between Heck and Trump, saying she believed that Nevadans would “reject Trump and Congressman Heck’s reckless agenda."

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8:45 p.m.

The atmosphere was festive at Born and Raised in the southwest part of Las Vegas, where businessman Danny Tarkanian, his family, and his friends gathered to await the results of the election. Tarkanian was leading in the race, 33 percent to state Sen. Michael Roberson’s 24 percent, with only mail-in and early voting ballots counted so far.

Meanwhile, the Associated Press called called the race for local synagogue leader Jacky Rosen over her opponent Henderson attorney Jesse Sbiah.

Reached by phone at her office Tuesday evening, Rosen said that she was “really proud, really excited” to win her party’s nomination to the district.”

She said that she was just going to “relish in the moment of pride and honor” tonight with her family, friends, and campaign staffers, get a good night sleep, and then kick off the general election campaign tomorrow. Asked whether she worried about the bitter tone seen in the Republican race in her district, Rosen said that she would continue to help people work “smarter not harder.”

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8:20 p.m.

All polls have closed in Nevada primary elections featuring fiercely competitive congressional races, a high-stakes U.S. Senate battle and several legislative contests.

A spokeswoman for Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske (seg-AHV'-skee) said total turnout was expected to be close to the 2014 primary election, when 19.3 percent of active registered voters participated.

Complete unofficial turnout figures for the 2016 primary election were expected sometime before 10 p.m.

No major snags were reported, but spokeswoman Kaitlin Barker says the Secretary of State received some reports of minor issue at some polling locations. She wasn't specific.

Barker says balloting wasn't affected, and all voters who wanted to participate were able to do so.

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8:13 p.m.

Incumbent Rep. Cresent Hardy has won the Republican congressional primary against two little-known opponents.

Hardy defeated Mike Monroe and Wayne Villines by wide margins in Tuesday's election.

He'll face the winner of a competitive Democratic primary that includes state Sen. Ruben Kihuen, former Assemblywoman Lucy Flores and philanthropist Susie Lee.

The 4th Congressional District includes North Las Vegas and rural central Nevada. Hardy won the seat in 2014 during a conservative "red wave" even though the district has a wide Democratic registration advantage.

Hardy is considered the most vulnerable House incumbent in Nevada.

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8:10 p.m.

Incumbent U.S. Rep. Dina Titus has easily won a Democratic primary in her Las Vegas House district.

Titus defeated lesser-known opponents Jose Solorio and Patrick Boylan to secure the nomination Tuesday.

The 1st Congressional District includes urban Las Vegas and has a 2-to-1 Democratic registration advantage. Titus has represented the district for two terms.

She's favored to win against whoever prevails in the Republican primary, and against her nonpartisan and independent opponents.

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8:12 p.m.

Shouts and tears of joy filled the at-capacity Culinary Local 226 main ballroom as union political spokeswoman Yvanna Cancela announced Ruben Kihuen as the winner in Congressional District 4's Democratic primary.

Cancela returned to the podium less than 10 minutes later to clarify that Kihuen's 42 percent to 21 percent, 3,000 vote lead over second-place Lucy Flores was only based on early voting results and that his victory "was not official yet." Cancela said it would be "very difficult" for anyone to overcome Kihuen's lead, though, even if the current Nevada state senator didn't receive any votes on Tuesday.

"I know we already celebrated, but the second one is going to be even bigger when we get the rest of the results," she said.

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8:09 p.m.

AP reports Jacky Rosen wins Democratic primary for U.S. House seat in southern Nevada. Eight minutes earlier, AP reported that three-term U.S. Rep. Joe Heck handily won Republican primary for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid's Senate seat, beating Sharron Angle.

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7:47 p.m.

Headquarters for CD4 Democratic candidate Ruben Kihuen, at Culinary 226, slowly filled with supporters awaiting election results as Latin salsa music blared over the sound system of the 300-person capacity room.

Enrique Hernandez, 31, a cashier in the Cosmopolitan casino floor, was one such Kihuen supporter. The longtime Las Vegan, eating pizza provided by the campaign, said he voted for Kihuen because "he's an honest guy that sticks to what he believes in."

"He's open-minded, too, and knows things change," Hernandez said.

Another supporter, 33-year-old Ebony Montano, a card dealer at Caesars Palace, said she and local dealers union TWU 721 were supporting Kinhuen for his "strong working background."

"He can really relate with the issues workers in our district face," Montano said.

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7 p.m.

Polls are closing in Nevada primary elections featuring fiercely competitive congressional races, a high-stakes U.S. Senate battle and several legislative contests.

Turnout appeared to be light during the day Tuesday after more than 143,000 residents voted early or by mail.

The state has 1.3 million active voters.

Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto and Republican Joe Heck are expected to easily shake off competitors to run for the seat being vacated by U.S. Sen. Harry Reid.

Residents are choosing who should compete for the open congressional seat held by Republican Rep. Joe Heck, and who among several Democrats will vie against GOP Rep. Cresent Hardy.

Hardy represents a Democratic-leaning district that includes North Las Vegas and large swaths of rural central Nevada.

Voters also are weighing in on numerous state legislative races.

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6:55 p.m.

Lydia Gutierrez of Sparks doesn't like raising taxes, but says it's sometimes necessary to adequately fund public schools.

A Democrat who works as a secretary for the city of Reno, Gutierrez brought a teenage son along when she cast her primary ballot Tuesday at Mendive Middle School.

"I have four kids, so education is a big issue for me," she said. "I'm for raising some taxes because there's no other way to get schools the money they need."

Gutierrez also is concerned about the economy and national security, and hasn't found a candidate that agrees with her on everything.

"I just try to find the candidates who agree with me most on the issues important to me," she said. "There never will be a perfect candidate."

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6:20 p.m.

Taxi driver Larry Wolfe looks forward to voting for Donald Trump in the fall, and said he voted Tuesday for candidates who will defend the U.S. Constitution, including the 2nd Amendment right to bear arms.

"We're not a socialistic country," Wolfe said after voting at Mendive Middle School in Sparks. "We are capitalistic, and we've gotten away from that."

"With Obama, you can't even buy ammunition anymore. And Hillary's even worse than Obama," said Wolfe, a registered Republican.

Trump isn't a politician, Wolfe said, "he's a very successful businessman, and he doesn't care what you think about what he said, or didn't say."

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5:45 p.m.

Longtime voter Tim Martenson said he's happy that interest in politics is high this year, and that younger people are getting involved.

"I have been so disappointed in our moving boundaries and everyone finagling to get the vote," Martenson said after casting his ballot at Green Valley High School in Henderson. "And finagling is the right word."

Martenson, a Democrat, said he works in security surveillance and has voted every year since 1968. He said he thinks most people are so busy in their lives today that they let others decide things for them.

"Politicians, the media. They tell us what to think, what to do and why we're going to do it," Martenson said. "It's easier to slide downstream than to swim up it. No one wanted to rock the boat."

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5:25 p.m.

About 15 percent of Nevada voters have cast their ballot with two hours of voting left.

The Nevada Secretary of State's Office reported that more than 50,000 people statewide had voted on Election Day as of 5 p.m. Tuesday.

Nearly 195,000 have voted counting the early vote period and mail-in ballots. About 15 percent of active Republicans have voted, and 12 percent of active Democrats have turned out.

Secretary of State spokeswoman Kaitlin Barker says there have been no reported issues related to the voting process on Election Day, although some minor issues were reported related to campaign activities at polling sites.

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5:15 p.m.

Mary Moore moved recently to Sparks from California's central coast, but the 66-year-old retired corrections worker never considered sitting out the primary election.

"I felt a responsibility to come in and vote," she said after casting her ballot Tuesday afternoon at Mendive Middle School. "I do know there are people who feel it doesn't matter either way so why bother."

Moore remembers being against Richard Nixon in 1968 and voting for Jimmy Carter in 1976. She no longer identifies with either major party.

"As far as Democrat and Republicans, I don't like belonging to either party. I think we should have access to either side to vote on," she said.

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4:07 p.m.

Retiree Kenny McDonnell was one of just a handful of people at a polling site at Mojave High School in North Las Vegas on a hot Tuesday afternoon. He said he always shows up for elections, even sleepy primaries like this one when relatively few others show up.

"My vote does count," explained McDonnell, 55. "I hope it does."

McDonnell said he doesn't watch much TV news, doesn't like to pick up the phone during campaign season and isn't terribly familiar with candidates' track records, but weighs the campaign literature he gets in the mail.

He declined to say who he voted for in the 4th Congressional District primary, but said the candidates were close in his mind.

"I just kind of went on instinct," he said.

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4 p.m.

Unemployed for seven years, John Ferrante voted with his wife at the Historical Fifth Street School in downtown Las Vegas.

The 54-year-old Democrat said he voted for former state attorney general Catherine Cortez Masto in the primary that she's expected to win on her way to a high-stakes general election. Ferrante said he wanted someone honest to replace retiring Sen. Harry Reid and not just the senator's same old policies.

The former janitor who said he lost his job over budget cuts and was homeless for a time, also said he voted for Democratic incumbent Rep. Dina Titus for the 1st Congressional District.

"I'm hoping that whoever gets in will keep the economy going and I'm hoping to get a job and start my life with my wife," Ferrante said.

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1:05 p.m.

Retiree and algebra tutor Les Hollingsworth said he'd voted early and picked Lucy Flores in a competitive 4th Congressional District Democratic House primary.

"Being Hispanic, especially in this area, is kind of important," he said as he was leaving Mojave High School in North Las Vegas, where summer school students and a few voters were milling around near a polling place around lunch time.

He liked that Flores was endorsed by organizations like Planned Parenthood and other groups.

But the 69-year-old Las Vegas resident, who has been bombarded with campaign mail, said he wouldn't be too disappointed if Ruben Kihuen or Susie Lee won.

"Either one is fine," he said.

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12:40 p.m.

More than 11,300 southern Nevada voters have cast their ballots in the primary election by Tuesday morning.

Joe Gloria, the Clark County Registrar of Voters in Las Vegas, reported the number as of 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.

There have been no issues reported at any of the polling locations in the area.

Gloria said it's too early to predict any trends for turnout for the primary election day voting but turnout for early voting broke records.

About 76,600 people turned out at early voting sites, making it the highest number ever recorded for early voting for the Nevada primary during a presidential election year.

There are nearly 890,000 registered voters in the county and more people tend to vote early or by mail than on Election Day.

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9:15 a.m.

Republican businessman Danny Tarkanian and Democratic synagogue leader Jacky Rosen appeared to have the advantage among early morning voters at Coronado High School.

Henderson resident Michele Topol, 66, said that Rosen’s mailers ultimately persuaded her to vote for the first-time congressional candidate.

“I saw that Harry Reid supported her,” Topol said. “I like Harry Reid, so that was enough for me.”

Republican voter Pat Vicioso, 63, said she chose Tarkanian over state Sen. Michael Roberson, despite living in Roberson’s Senate district and voting for him in the past.

“My other choice was Roberson, but he supported that big tax increase,” Vicioso said. “I got the sense that he wouldn’t do that when I voted for him.”

In Summerlin, voters trickled in to cast their ballots at Becker Middle School. Most Democratic voters there said in interviews they had voted for state Sen. Ruben Kihuen, though they admitted that it had been a difficult decision choosing between him and former Assemblywoman Lucy Flores and philanthropist Susie Lee.

“I’ve met (Kihuen) a couple of times and really liked him. It was tough between Susie Lee and Flores,” said 53-year-old Summerlin resident Ray Reese. “I felt a good rapport with him."

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7 a.m.

Voters headed to the polls Tuesday for Nevada's primary election, which featured two fiercely competitive congressional races, a high-stakes U.S. Senate battle and several legislative contests.

More than 143,000 residents have already weighed in by voting early or by mail. Ballots are in for about 11 percent of Nevada's 1.3 million active voters.

Residents are choosing who should compete for the open seat held by Republican Rep. Joe Heck and who should try to reclaim GOP Rep. Cresent Hardy's seat for the Democrats.

A large field of candidates is vying for a chance to unseat Hardy in the Democratic-leaning district that includes North Las Vegas and large swaths of rural central Nevada.

Voters also are weighing in on numerous state legislative races.

Sun staff members Ric Anderson, Megan Messerly and Chris Kudialis contributed to this report, as did the Associated Press