Under democrat control, fewer states were more impacted by the Covid tyranny than Nevada, which like Hawaii is dependent on the hospitality industry for its economic growth. Cities like Las Vegas have arisen as faster growing metropolitan areas in America and has received legitimacy through the establishments of the Golden Knights and Raiders alongside increasing legitimacy of sports gambling. Just as there is economic opportunity, so is there political opportunity for republicans.
GOVERNORS RACE
Switching from Democrat to Republican in 2021 is John Lee, mayor of North Las Vegas. As mayor, he oversaw the improvement of Vegas’s financial woes. Historically, he was seen as a moderate democrat, which is why he was unsuccessful in his 2012 congressional bid. Politically, it can be reasoned that he has not changed. He boasts that he was always pro-gun, pro-business, and “pro-life.” How truly socially conservative Lee is remains to be seen. His website lacks a platform substantiating the change he would implement, and his Twitter history is lacking. From a religious standpoint, Lee is a Mormon. There was an old child pornography incident in 2014 where Lee had CP on his iPad which he claims was from a malicious email. Lasting only one day, the investigation was insufficient to draw any conclusions, criminal or otherwise. Overall, authenticity is the main concern with John Lee. Whether the base will turn out for an openly moderate republican remains to be seen.
As the Trump endorsed frontrunner, Sherriff Joe Lombardo hopes to capitalize on his law enforcement background to win the governor’s mansion. This background gives him a decent platform on second amendment issues, as he is vowing to do away with Red Flag Laws and other gun control measures. With Lombardo, there are legitimate concerns. For starters, he claims he is pro-life, but is pro-life with exceptions. In the aftermath of the Vegas shooting, he was rather buddy-buddy with Governor Sisolak. He is against Constitutional Carry, so one must ask, how Pro-2A is he? Lacking partisan political experience, it is reasonable to be skeptical to just how conservative Lombardo truly is. This is without investigating whether his office enforced Covid tyranny, which it probably did as is evidenced by his vaccine mandate for new hires that he temporarily implemented. How this fraud is a frontrunner is astounding. Voters should reject him.
Standing 5’11” and middleweight contender for governor is Joey Gilbert, former boxer and lawyer running for governor as a first-time candidate. Gilbert is running a Never Again campaign when it comes to Covid tyranny. He has platformed various inexpensive therapeutics and condemned the jabs, even in early 2021. As a lawyer, he made available his willingness to help workers against jab mandates. This guy gets it. He is even on Gab, so that is a plus. That he a boxer makes him more instinctually conservative, as fighters function as businessmen selling themselves as the product. It also might make him resonate with the Hispanics, blacks, and Vegas workers in a general election who might like the novelty of a boxer. Joey Gilbert is the best candidate in this race. Hands down.
Biomedical Venture Capitalist Guy Nohra is a Lebanese Christian who is a political outsider and first-time candidate. He seems to think his immigration story will resonate into a formidable candidacy, but it is his millionaire status is more likely to impact his chances. I imagine he has lower name recognition than other candidates on the ballot based on head-to-head polling with Sisolak. Whether there are any Silicon Valley shenanigans he was involved with could be an issue with Nevada Republicans. Overall he is not the worst candidate in this race, but his messaging is tonally weaker than his peers.
Former US Senator Dean Heller is once again running for statewide office in the Silver State. Being a career politician, Heller has an extensive political record. In particular, he has been weak on social issues. He supported extending benefits and legal protections to homosexuals. In regards to Trump, Heller spoke out against his “Muslim” immigration ban. Heller was one of many who campaigned on repealing Obamacare, even passing repeals while he was in office only to waffle when the republicans had the presidency. Heller’s primary issue is that he is a known quantity to the people of Nevada, who only voted him out of office in 2018.
SENATE SEAT: POSSIBLE REPUBLICAN FLIP
Born into a political lineage, Alex Laxalt is the perceived frontrunner for the Nevada senate GOP primary. Previously, Laxalt served as the Nevada AG, where he signed onto various amicus briefs for Texas abortion laws and was generally in line with other Republican AG’s throughout the country. Aside from being a political establishment, there is the issue of whether he supported Red Flag Laws in the wake of the Vegas shooting. In an official report from the AG’s office, it was recommended that the legislature look into these laws when Laxalt previously spoke at a 2017 NRA conference against RFL’s. His tenure as AG ended when he was defeated by Sisolak in 2018 in the governor’s race, losing by 4.1%. Laxalt is endorsed by Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, and the national GOP establishment. Surprisingly, Ron DeSantis has endorsed him, which is a first from what I have seen. Should he win, and he probably will, expect heavy national backing towards his candidacy.
Challenging Laxalt is Captain Sam Brown, former combat veteran who is himself a wounded warrior. During his tour, an IED detonated, striking his vehicle and wounding him severely. Voters will notice this immediately upon looking at his face. However, a candidate is more than his story, and stories have been used to trojan horse terrible men into office. Politically, Brown failed in his previous bid for local office in Texas, so winnability is a factor going into what will be a contentious senate race. His campaign has gone negative against Laxalt, highlighting his support for red flag laws, his inaccessibility to the public, and proximity to lobbyist. He might be the better of the two candidates, but simply is not the “chosen one” in this race. In the worst case scenario, he should probably consider running for local office.
Nevada 1st: POSSIBLE REPUBLICAN FLIP
At +4 Democrat, this district represents a potential flip. Mark Robertson, former veteran is seeking this seat. Robertson brands himself as a constitutionalist seeking to fight for Americans as he fought for them overseas. His platform is fairly standard for a conservative candidate, though it could have more emphasis on covid. He boasts an endorsement from Andy Biggs Twitter, who has a 100% Liberty Score. Overall, Robertson is a solid choice who reminds me of candidates running in MD-2. While not flashy, he would greatly benefit from being down ballot and is a safe bet.
Bound to make Jesse Kelly’s list, Carolina Serrano is Colombian immigrant that is for border security and American First agenda. From an endorsement standpoint, Alex Laxalt is in her corner, which lends an advantage come primary time. Interestingly enough Serrano seeks to expose government corruption through oversight of the DOJ, FDA, and CDC. This lady understands what the Congress can actually accomplish, making her a potential firebrand on the right. Having worked on the Trump campaign’s Hispanic outreach efforts, she is primed to utilize these talents to make further inroads with an increasingly conservative demographic.
A friend of the deceased Sheldon Adelson, David Brog is a longshot for this seat. The most notable thing about Brog is that he is a shill for Israel. His connections to Maccabee Task Force and Christians United for Israel demonstrate that he is not America first or even Nevadans first, but Israel First. Hard Pass.
The last major candidate is Morgun Sholty, a family man with an endorsement from Thomas Massie. Even at the local level, he has connections, which should help propel him. Overall, he appears conservative, speaking out a bit against the Fed, which is just what Washington needs more of. Even if he loses, he would make a good candidate for local office.
Nevada 3rd: POSSIBLE REPUBLICAN FLIP
At only a +2 democrat, the third district is a straight up tossup that leans favorably red going into the midterm cycle.
Backed by the GOP establishment, April Becker hopes to flip this seat. Notably in her tent are Kevin McCarthy and Elise Stefanik, indicating that she has national profile from the congressional leadership. Laxalt has also endorsed her. This establishment backing warrants skepticism. In a recent interview with The Nevada Globe, she did not answer the question as to whether she would vote for the $40 billion Ukraine AID, instead giving a “I have to read the bill” and “we can’t keep spending money” response. On the question of abortion, she did not articulate whether she was even pro-life, which makes me wonder. In 2020, she lost a local election to the democrat state senate majority leader by 630 votes, but going into this cycle, she is well funded and a favorite who has been elevated by party elites.
Owner of his construction company, John Kovacs is hoping to transition into politics. Kovacs prides himself on being America First and a believer in American Exceptionalism. Overall, he seems like a solid choice for conservatives. The biggest issue being that since he is a business owner, whether any self-enrichment conflicts will arise. He might also be too pro-business rather than a strong social conservative. In this race, he feels very much in the middle, which is neither bad nor overly inspiring.
Probably my personal favorite in this race is Noah Malgeri, a mechanical engineer and lawyer who is very America First. This guy is fairly based. He wants to wield the congressional oversight powers against the Deep State and even makes comments against the RINO congressional leadership. He jokingly asked whether he could claim Zelensky as a dependent on his taxes. He is also against the jabs, and not “pro-vaccine, anti-mandate.” Needless to say, he is in tune with the base and is the type of man we need in congress.
Nevada 4th: POSSIBLE REPUBLICAN FLIP
At +5 Democrat, this is the most difficult of the swing districts to flip.
Sam Peters is a veteran and local PAC leader who focused on promoting candidates favorable to law enforcement. Now he is running for Congress. Endorsement wise, he had Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar in his corner, both members of the House Freedom Caucus. Early on, Peters did promote the narrative on Covid, but seemed to come around towards the summer of 2020, condemning the governor for barring early treatment and initiating mask mandates. This is much to his credit and he is an overall solid choice.
Challenging Peters is Annie Black, a first term assembly representative who was motivated to run following Covid lockdowns. In the Nevada legislature, she was censured for her refusal to comply with their masking policies. In her local office, she has stood up to tyrants and bucked the system, becoming a firebrand in local politics, something she would likely be in Washington. While I believe both candidates are decent, Black certainly demonstrates more populist, anti-establishment tendencies that reveal what type of representative she would be in Congress.
Conclusion
Nevada represents a gold mine of opportunities that the GOP is going to place heavy resources into for the 2022 Midterm cycle. With ample opportunity, the republicans should make waves in Nevada, which Trump possibly won if not for voter fraud. With Hispanics trending conservative, several candidates are poised to continue the gains made by Trump’s America First agenda.
However, the biggest detriment is Donald Trump endorsing a jab-mandating RINO in Joe Lombardo and the establishment choosing Alex Laxalt, their golden boy. The top of the ticket has the ability to hinder and undermine the candidates down ballot.
