For a full list of endorsements in state and local races, scroll to the end for our Election Day crib sheet.
The first Democrat elected governor in more than 20 years, Steve Sisolak’s tenure has been far from perfect. Fortunately, we do not expect perfection from our elected leaders. During a time of extraordinary crisis, he showed us steady, calm, and resolute leadership. He countered extremism and preserved the institutions of democracy by expanding voter access. And he successfully delivered on the overwhelming majority of his big-ticket campaign promises, including raising the minimum wage, expanding the small-business assistance program, updating the K-12 funding formula, and boosting Medicaid reimbursement rates.
In the Republican primary, while five leading candidates continue to undermine democracy through their support of the “Big Lie,” there is one candidate who has both refuted it and committed to taking action to oppose voter suppression, empower people through voter education and mobilization, and protect the right to vote.
A self-described “Renaissance Republican,” William “Dock” Walls has also developed creative solutions to help address the epidemic of violence and help balance the state budget. Given his independence and respect for all Nevadans, we offer our endorsement.
Walls faces an uphill battle in his campaign for governor, but one thing is certain: If the Republican party is to return to its place as a positive contributing force in the two-party system, people like Dock Walls are indispensable voices of sanity and dignity.
Senate
A Las Vegas native who embodies the quintessential narrative of the American Dream, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto has demonstrated that she is a worthy successor to former Sen. Harry Reid, and a champion for all Nevadans. She was incredibly productive for a first-term senator, and her ability to build coalitions resulted in a rare combination of endorsements that include national police officers, firefighters, labor unions, environmental groups and social- and economic-justice organizations alike.
On the Republican side of the Senate race, we offer no endorsement.
While most eyes are focused on the fight between Adam Laxalt and Sam Brown, we cannot endorse either candidate, as both actively have contributed to former President Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 election that undermine American democracy.
In fact, of the eight candidates who are running in the Republican primary, only Bill Hockstedler cleared the extremely low bar we established of not spreading verifiably false or conspiratorial propaganda. Hockstedler identifies himself by the moniker “straight shooter,” but he is still too extreme on some of his positions for us to offer our endorsement.
House of Representatives
In the races for House of Representatives, the Sun strongly endorses the Democratic incumbents in Southern Nevada’s 1st, 3rd and 4th Congressional Districts: Dina Titus, Susie Lee and Steven Horsford, respectively.
Titus has spent 30 years demonstrating her skills as a pragmatic leader and public servant who gets things done for Nevadans. As chairwoman of the subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management, the subcommittee that oversees many federal real estate and economic development programs, Titus is well positioned to ensure the future economic growth of Nevada. This position is especially important in a state in which 63% of the land is owned by the federal government.
Like Titus, Horsford has been a strong advocate for ensuring all Nevadans have access to affordable health care, affordable prescriptions, and job-training programs. A seasoned veteran with more than a decade of accomplished service in Congress and the state Senate, Horsford has earned our endorsement.
While not as experienced as Titus or Horsford, Lee is gaining positive notoriety as she seeks her third term in Congress. A staunch advocate for safer and healthier children, families and communities, Lee rose to prominence as the founding director of Inner-City Games, now known as After-School All-Stars, which conducts after-school programs for children.
In short, all three incumbents have proven track records as defenders of democracy and advocates for Nevada. Each now have multiple terms under their belts and have served commendably. They deserve another two years representing the state.
On the Republican side, it’s a disappointing field short on public leadership experience and long on Trump-era extremism.
We consider several candidates to be active threats to democracy and cannot endorse any of them. However, we will note that of the 16 Republican candidates running for CD1, CD3, or CD4, two — Mark Robertson and John Kovacs — did go on record with a news outlet stating that Joe Biden defeated Trump in 2020 and is the rightful president of the United States. Despite these statements, both candidates have touted the existence of election fraud and the need for greater election integrity, undermining their own admissions that Biden was duly elected.
Lieutenant governor
Lisa Cano Burkhead has proven herself to be an effective and fair-minded leader. She is a lifelong educator in a state whose education system needs reform, and we trust the governor’s thought process in choosing her as his lieutenant governor when Kate Marshall left to serve in the Biden administration.
However, we cannot ignore what an outstanding mayor Debra March has been for the city of Henderson. She has successfully guided Nevada’s second-largest city through a period of rapid growth and transformation while masterfully responding to a global pandemic.
Both candidates represent the best of the next generation of Democratic leaders and either would make an excellent lieutenant governor.
On the Republican side, we offer no endorsement. Despite seeking the second-highest office in the state, three of the seven candidates do not offer any policy proposals in locations that are accessible to the public. Of the four remaining candidates, they have all either actively lied to the public about their experiences or credentials, demonstrated a lack of understanding of the most basic issues facing Nevadans, or have taken action to undermine democracy. One particularly noteworthy example is Mack Miller, who was caught inventing a nonexistent organization to give himself an endorsement. In a GOP ecosystem of false and misleading statements, we cannot offer an endorsement.
Secretary of state
The race may not be as well-known as races further up the ballot, but it is essential to the preservation of our democracy, because the secretary of state oversees all elections.
While we believe that Democrat Cisco Aguilar, who is running unopposed in the Democratic primary, is the best choice to win in November, should Nevada choose a Republican, Kris Dahir is the only one who does not pose a direct threat to democracy. Every GOP candidate outside of Dahir has effectively stated within their materials that they are comfortable with suppressing votes, touting unfounded conspiracy theories and subverting democracy. Dahir’s campaign website leads with a promise to follow existing election law rather than subvert it and to intentionally work to counter disinformation regarding elections.
Attorney general
Incumbent Aaron Ford served the state well during the pandemic. We see no reason to abandon his leadership now.
In the Republican primary, we offer no endorsement.
For months, Sigal Chattah has been accusing her primary opponent, Tisha Black, of being a Democratic party plant that the “liberal media” would rally behind. We are obliged to disappoint as we decline to endorse either candidate.
Chattah’s text message stating that Ford, a Black man, should be hung from a crane was, at best, joking about violence against a government official — and at worst, advocating for a public lynching.
Adding insult to injury, both candidates made statements last month on the issue of abortion that call into question whether they have read or understand the state’s constitution. It was a surprising gaffe given that abortion is one of the GOP’s most important wedge issues and the two women are running to be the state’s highest-ranking attorney.
As such, we do not believe either of them is fit for public office.
Controller
Ellen Spiegel was a five-term member of the Assembly who demonstrated her ability to be an effective leader and advocate for all Nevadans. Her legislative accomplishments include fighting for equal pay and reproductive rights for women, marriage equality for the LGBT community, and health insurance coverage for people with pre-existing conditions. She is highly educated and has significant experience in economics and commerce, making her among the most highly qualified former legislators to seek the position of controller.
There is no Republican primary.
State Senate
• District 2, Republican primary: No endorsement. The statements and positions of the candidates are so confusing and contradictory that even the state party chose not to endorse any of them.
• District 8, Republican primary: Raja Mourey or Joey Paulos. Of the eight candidates, these are the only two who met our criteria. While we may not agree on all of their policy proposals, they are not active insurrectionists or otherwise undermining democracy.
• Senate District 12, Democratic primary: Julie Ann Pazina. The Sun endorsed her opponent, Lisa Guzman, for a school board seat in 2020, but that was before the tremendous drama and unprofessional conduct displayed in the ouster and rehiring of Superintendent Jesus Jara. Pazina brings none of that baggage and is deserving of our endorsement.
Assembly
• District 28, Democratic primary: Cindi Rivera. Aaron Bautista and Antonio Bowen both bring solid experience and excellent ideas to the table and would make excellent legislators. However, Rivera’s experience in education makes her voice invaluable in a state that desperately needs to get its educational system back on track.
Board of Regents
• District 6: Heather Brown. As the president and co-founder of StartUp Vegas, Brown is a proven innovator who gets things done. That said, voters with an appetite for a lesser-known newcomer should look into Karl Catarata. Catarata is a recent UNLV graduate and is among the youngest candidates to ever seek office in Nevada. He possesses an impressive grasp of the issues plaguing higher education in the state and is worth learning more about.
• District 7: Susan Brager. Her 12 years of experience on the Clark County School Board and 12 years on the Clark County Commission have proven her commitment to crafting good policy for the benefit of our students. She also supports allowing university presidents to be largely free of interference and meddling by the regents — an essential step that Nevada must take.
• District 8: Michelee “Shelly” Crawford and John Patrick Rice. Crawford’s master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from UNLV and experience as both a school principal and officer in the Air Force National Guard immediately caught our eye. However, with a fine arts degree from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, a Ph.D. from Capella University and experience as a faculty member and administrator at Great Basin College, Rice brings a unique perspective and his own impressive credentials. Both possess attributes that would make them outstanding additions to the board. Regardless of who wins the seat, we hope they find a way to work together and learn from each other.
• District 13: John T. Moran. He has demonstrated strong, reliable, steadfast leadership through years of crisis and turmoil caused by COVID-19 and the drama surrounding former chancellor Melody Rose. We offer him our endorsement without reservation.
Clark County School District
Much like Nevada’s educational system, CCSD’s board needs an overhaul. It has been marred by conflict, turmoil and a lack of professionalism that is unacceptable and unjustified — even during an unprecedented global pandemic. Our endorsements reflect our desire to return to a functioning school board with greater competence, professionalism and empathy. We support Irene Cepeda in District D, Irene Bustamante Adams in District F and Greg Wieman in District G.
_____________________________________________
Election Day crib sheet (I) is for incumbent; ** denotes dual endorsement
Democratic primary
U.S. Senate: Catherine Cortez Masto (I)
House Congressional District 1: Dina Titus (I)
House Congressional District 3: Susie Lee (I)
House Congressional District 4: Steven Horsford (I)
Governor: Steve Sisolak (I)
Lieutenant governor**: Debra March and Elizabeth “Lisa” Cano Burkhead (I)
Attorney general: Aaron Ford (I)
Controller: Ellen Spiegel
State Senate races
District 10: Fabian Donate (I)
District 12: Julie Ann Pazina
District 21: James Ohrenschall (I)
State Assembly races
District 3: Selena Torres (I)
District 12: Max E. Carter II
District 13: Will Rucker
District14: Erica Mosca
District 15: Howard Watts (I)
District 16: Cecelia Gonzalez (I)
District 20: David Orentlicher (I)
District 28: Cindi Rivera
District 29: Lesley Cohen (I)
District 42: Tracy Brown-May (I)
Republican Primary
U.S. Senate: No endorsement
U.S. House: No endorsement
Governor: William “Dock” Walls
Lieutenant governor: No Endorsement
Secretary of state: Kris Dahir
Attorney general: No Endorsement
State Senate races
District 2: No endorsement
District 8**: Raja Mourey or Joey Paulos
State Assembly races
District 2: Heidi Kasama (I)
District 5: Alan Hedrick
District 12: Flemming Larsen
District 13: Brian Hibbetts
District 29: Rhonda Knightly
District 35: Tiffany Jones
District 42: Edward “Eddie” Facey
Nonpartisan races
These races will appear on ballots for both Democratic and Republican primary voters.
Board of Regents
District 6: Heather Brown
District 7: Susan Brager
District 8**: Michelee “Shelly” Crawford and John Patrick Rice
District 13: John Moran (I)
County races
Clark County Commission, District E: Richard “Tick” Segerblom (I)
District Attorney: Steve Wolfson (I)
Recorder: Debbie Conway (I)
Treasurer: J. Ken Diaz
Sheriff: Kevin McMahill
Clark County School Board
District D: Irene Cepeda (I)
District F: Irene Bustamante Adams
District G: Greg Wieman
Citywide races
Las Vegas City Council, Ward 2: Mike Tomko
Henderson mayor: Michelle Romero
Henderson City Council, Ward 3**: Steve Rice and Jodi Tyson
North Las Vegas mayor**: Pamela Goynes-Brown and Pat Spearman
North Las Vegas City Council, Ward 1: Isaac E. Barron (I)
North Las Vegas City Council, Ward 3: Scott Black (I)