In this file photo, Danny Tarkanian, then a Republican candidate for Congress, responds to a question during an interview at the Railroad Pass Casino Thursday, Oct. 20, 2016.
Published Friday, March 16, 2018 | 10:58 a.m.
Updated Friday, March 16, 2018 | 11:54 a.m.
Danny Tarkanian is no longer running against GOP incumbent Dean Heller in the U.S. Senate primary in Nevada and is instead running for Congress with President Donald Trump’s support.
The Republican candidate dropped out of the Senate race today, the last day of the filing period, saying in a statement that Trump reached out to him Wednesday urging him to run for Congress.
This morning, Trump tweeted, “It would be great for the Republican Party of Nevada, and it’s unity if good guy Danny Tarkanian would run for Congress and Dean Heller, who is doing a really good job, could run for Senate unopposed!”
Tarkanian is now running in the 3rd Congressional District, where both Republicans and Democrats face crowded primaries, and says the president is “adamant that a unified GOP ticket in Nevada is the best direction for the America First movement.”
This isn’t the first time Tarkanian has run for the district seat. He beat out former state Sen. Michael Roberson in the 2016 Republican primary only to lose in the general election to Democratic Rep. Jacky Rosen.
Heller could face Rosen in November.
Rosen said in a statement that Heller has been aligning himself with the president in the last eight months, and said this was Trump’s response to Heller voting in favor of repealing and replacing Obamacare, an effort that ultimately failed. Heller had said during a press conference with Gov. Brian Sandoval that he wanted to see a health care bill that didn’t “pull the rug” out from under hundreds of thousands of Nevada residents.
“Dean Heller is a self-serving politician who showed his true colors during this primary by breaking his promises on health care, helping write this reckless tax bill, and siding with the White House on immigration instead of fighting to protect Dreamers,” Rosen said. “If he thinks Nevada voters will forget as he tries to rewrite his failed record all over again, he's got another thing coming.”
Tarkanian has been attacking Heller over his votes both for and against repealing and replacing Obamacare, saying the incumbent does not fully support the president’s agenda.
Heller is the only Republican senator seeking re-election in a state that Hillary Clinton won in her 2016 presidential bid.
“I appreciate President Trump’s support and kind words,” Heller said. “We’ve accomplished a lot in the last year including cutting taxes for hardworking Nevadans and making sure that Nevada's 300,000 veterans can access the health care and benefits that they need and deserve.”
