Voting cards are shown at the Clark County Election Department in North Las Vegas Thursday, May 26, 2022.
Sunday, June 5, 2022 | 2 a.m.
In the first week of early voting for the primary election, Clark County saw about 23,758 residents cast a ballot — about 9,000 Democrats, 11,000 Republicans and 2,000 nonpartisan voters have turned out.
Washoe County in Northern Nevada saw 23,488 people vote early in the initial week, with 9,933 Democrats, 9,307 Republicans and 4,249 nonpartisan voters heading to an early voting site.
Washoe also received about 11,428 mail-in ballots. Of those, Democrats made up 5,392, Republicans made up 3,133 and nonpartisans made up 2,904.
That means voters have some catching up to do to equal 2020 figures. In Nevada’s 2020 primary, which was conducted by mail because of the coronavirus pandemic, 184,855 ballots had been received as of the Friday before the election in Clark County, officials said at the time. Once all of the primary votes had been counted, 305,008 people had voted in Clark County, a turnout of nearly 27%.
Many were motivated to vote two years ago because it was a presidential election year, during the uncertainty of the pandemic, and at the height of the racial unrest following the killing of an unarmed Black man, George Floyd, by a police officer in Minnesota.
Those current numbers are low, but they makes sense.
As the Republican Party has raised unfounded concerns about mail-in ballots, many Republicans may be waiting until Election Day on June 14 to cast their votes in person. And in general, many voters prefer voting in person.
A Pew Research poll conducted ahead of the 2020 general election found that about 39% of voters surveyed planned to cast their vote by mail-in ballot, while 33% planned to vote in person on Election Day, and 21% planned to vote in person at an early-voting location.
It’s also important to note that midterm primaries historically have a lower turnout than general elections.
In the 2018 midterm primary, 44% of the state’s Democrats and 44% of its Republicans voted. Early voting made up 47.75% of total ballots cast.
On Monday, the Nevada Secretary of State’s office will release statewide data about the first week of early voting.
Don’t know where you can vote early? Visit Clark County’s Election Department website for a list of the early voting sites.
Money race
Former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt has a significant fundraising edge on U.S. Army veteran Sam Brown in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate.
Laxalt raised $1,533,723 between April 1 and May 25 and has $2,074,760 on hand, according to figures submitted late last week to the Federal Election Commission. Brown raised $732,830 and has $362,480 on hand.
The two are competing to face Democratic incumbent Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, who raised $3,656,378 in the most recent cycle and has a $9 million war chest.
In the race for Nevada’s 1st Congressional District, where candidates are looking to oust Rep. Dina Titus, the incumbent raised the most with $248,079 and has $1.28 million on hand. Her Democratic primary opponent, Amy Vilela, raised $56,288 and has $53,373 on hand. Vilela also has debt of $53,010.
In the Republican primary for the district, former Donald Trump campaign employee Carolina Serrano has a fundraising edge with $141,226 in the most recent cycle and has $208,479 on hand. She also has $115,503 in debt.
Incumbent Rep. Steven Horsford in Nevada’s 4th Congressional District raised $314,976 between April 1 and May 25 and has $2,070,859 on hand. Republicans Annie Black raised $33,477.10 and has $167,519 left over, and Sam Peters raised $74,642 and has $81,155 on hand.
In Nevada’s 3rd Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Susie Lee raised $360,372 and has a $2.3 million warchest. One of her potential Republican opponents, attorney April Becker, raised $125,559 and has $249,366 on hand. Noah Malgeri, the other Republican running in that primary, raised $15,761 and has $2,363 on hand with $6,107 in debt.
Incumbent Rep. Mark Amodei, the sole Republican in Nevada’s congressional delegation, raised $148,514 and has $258,625 on hand. His primary opponent in Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District, Danny Tarkanian, a Douglas County commissioner, raised $127,384 and has $44,084 left over. Tarkanian also has a debt of $366,69.
Catching up with your representatives
Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., last week co-introduced the Strengthening Cybersecurity for Medical Devices Act with Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind. The act would require the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to review and update medical device cybersecurity guidelines and suggestions to make sure devices are protected from possible cyber attacks, Rosen’s office said in a statement.
“In light of increased cyberthreats, we must strengthen the security of our health care system’s cyber infrastructure,” Rosen said in the statement. “This bipartisan bill I introduced with Sen. Young will ensure that medical devices and technologies are up to date with the latest cybersecurity, protecting patients and health care systems.”
On Friday, Reps. Lee and Horsford hosted a gun violence prevention roundtable with Moms Demand Action and Rep. Debbie Wasserman, D-Fla., following the recent mass shootings in Buffalo, N.Y.; Uvalde, Texas; and Tulsa, Okla. Lee co-signed a letter to the House leadership after the Uvalde school shooting calling for action to address gun violence.
Gov. Steve Sisolak also joined Moms Demand Action at a “Wear Orange” event Friday night at Lorenzi Park as part of a nationwide effort to honor gun violence victims and raise awareness of gun violence-prevention efforts.
Countdown
Days to primary: 9
Days to midterm: 155
