By Josh Meny, 2 News Nevada, November 14, 2024
In a victory for Governor Joe Lombardo, legislative Republicans prevented Democrats from achieving two-thirds supermajorities in both chambers of the legislature.
The balance of power in the Senate remains unchanged, with Democrats holding 13 seats and Republicans holding 8. In the Assembly, Democrats have 27 seats, and Republicans have 15, with Republicans managing to flip one seat, thereby blocking the supermajority for the Democrats.
If the Democrats had achieved supermajorities in both chambers, Governor Lombardo would have lost his veto power, significantly diminishing his legislative influence.
**Key Races:**
**State Senate, District 11**
Republican Lori Rogich defeated incumbent Senator Dallas Harris, 58.36% to 41.64%, with a margin of 1,075 votes.
**Assembly, District 35**
Rebecca Edgeworth defeated Democrat Sharifa Wahab, 54.34% to 45.66%, by 3,379 votes. This seat was vacated by Democrat Michelle Gorelow in relation to an ethics controversy.
**Assembly, District 4**
Republican Lisa Cole won against Democrat Ryan Hampton, 54.43% to 45.57%, with a margin of 3,476 votes.
Democratic Assembly leadership faced tight races, winning by just a few hundred votes.
**Assembly, District 41**
Sandra Jauregui narrowly defeated Republican Rafael Arroyo, 50.32% to 49.68%, with a margin of 230 votes.
**Assembly, District 9**
Steve Yeager won against Republican Erica Neely, 51.10% to 49.90%, with a margin of 767 votes.
We interviewed Nevada Senate Minority Leader Robin Titus regarding the perception that Republicans would become a super-minority in both chambers.
“The political pundits gave up on us; they gave up on the Senate and said we were going to be in the super minority no matter what, And they were going to have to spend their money in the Assembly. Those of us in the Senate said, well, wait a minute here; we’re not going to give up the Senate that easily, and with the help of the governor he picked and asked Laurie Rogich in the south the run, we had five stellar candidates,” said (R-17) State Senate Minority Leader Robin Titus.
While the Democrats retained a majority, Republican Assemblywoman Heidi Kasam commented on the strong showing for Republican candidates in southern Nevada.
“My seat was critical to hold. Assembly District 2. That’s one reason it was under so much attack. Assembly District 4 Lisa Cole prevailed in that we needed to keep that seat, and we did because that was a republican seat before, but it was an open seat, so we had to fight for that. Then, we needed to flip at least one additional seat, which we did, which was Assembly District 35. Doctor Rebecca Edgeworth was successful at that, taking us out of the super minority,” explained (R-2) Assemblywoman Heidi Kasama.
Democratic Assemblyman Reuben D’Silva discussed the recent shift to red in legislative races.
“We did experience a little bit of a mini-red wave, not just in Nevada, southern Nevada, and across the country. That’s something we, as Democrats, are very weary of. I think it’s up to us to continue pushing our message forward and continuing to engage our constituents. Being there, hearing from them, and being the best sort representatives we can,” said (D-28) Assemblyman Reuben D’Silva.
D’Silva mentioned that he helped campaign for other Democrats and that no votes were taken for granted.
“We were successfully able to defend pretty much every single one of our incumbents in the Assembly. We received this, I think, through the fact that we were engaged throughout this process. There were tight races, but we prevailed,” said D’Silva.
PK O’Neil, the current Republican Assembly minority floor leader, spoke with us on Wednesday at the Red Move dinner held at the Atlantis Casino. O’Neil stated that Republicans have gained traction on various issues.
“We do have a message; we do have a calling from the citizens from this state to address the issues they want to address. Getting back to that education, public safety, and diversity in the economy, they really should listen to us because we’re going to keep delivering the message and growing our numbers,” said (R-40) Assembly Minority Floor Leader PK O’Neil.
We have contacted the Nevada Assembly Democrats for a statement regarding the election results, but they have not yet responded.