Election year features more than caucuses

By BRENDAN RILEY

Associated Press Writer

Nevada's Jan. 19 presidential caucuses are getting lots of attention as the 2008 election year opens - but there's more going on in the political sphere than the state's new, high-profile role in the battle for the White House.

True, the upcoming election cycle won't include contests for Nevada governor, lieutenant governor or other statewide elective constitutional officers. Races for four-year terms in those offices were decided in 2006.

And while there are no U.S. Senate contests this year, the state's three congressional seats are up for grabs.

Voters also will decide two state Supreme Court seats, consider numerous ballot questions, which may include a plans to boost taxes on Nevada's casinos, and elect members of the state Legislature.

Nevada voters will be asked to decide contests for all 42 state Assembly seats and 10 of the 21 state Senate seats. Many veteran lawmakers, including Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio and Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, are in their final races due to term limits.

"They all play together," says Matt Griffin, elections deputy for Secretary of State Ross Miller. "It's a presidential election and it's not the first time that we've been a battleground state. But it's the first time that's been coupled with us being a caucus state."

The early caucus activity will jump-start voter registration for Democrats and Republicans, and Griffin said that could lead to voter participation that's better than the strong turnout typically seen in presidential election years in Nevada.

Griffin also said election rule changes should help improve voter activity - especially one aimed at giving the public more access to advance preparations for voting and actual balloting.

The rule change on public access will enable anyone to observe actual voting and the preliminary testing that's done to ensure election results will be accurate.

Nevada's primary election will be held Aug. 12 and the general election will be held on Nov. 4.

In the U.S. House races, Republican Jon Porter is up for a third term in his 3rd Congressional District seat. Already Porter faces challengers, including Democrat Robert Daskas, a deputy Clark County district attorney.

The district has nearly an equal number of Democrats and Republicans, and Porter won the seat in 2006 by fewer than 4,000 votes over Tessa Hafen, a former aide to Sen. Harry Reid who like Daskas had never held elected office.

In the 2nd Congressional District, GOP Rep. Dean Heller will be up for a second term. He won his first term in 2006 by a 50-46 percent margin - not much given the strongly Republican registration in the district. In the northern, rural district, Heller fended off a strong challenge Jill Derby, who now heads the state Democratic Party and will be instrumental in trying to win seats from Republicans.

Also up for re-election is veteran Rep. Shelley Berkley, a Democrat who has held her Las Vegas-based 1st Congressional District seat since 1998, easily winning re-election.

Besides Raggio and Buckley in the legislative races, other veterans who are term-limited and face final runs for their respective offices in 2008 include Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus and Sens. Mike Schneider and Valerie Wiener, all Las Vegas Democrats.

Also up for final re-election bids are Republican Sens. Dean Rhoads of Tuscarora and Mike McGinness of Fallon. Eleven Assembly members, besides Buckley, are in the same spot, among them Democrats Morse Arberry, Sheila Leslie, Mark Manendo and David Parks and Republicans John Carpenter and John Marvel.

Incumbents up for re-election to the state Supreme Court include Chief Justice Bill Maupin and Justice Mark Gibbons.

Nevada's primary election will be held Aug. 12 and the general election will be held on Nov. 4.

Campaign

calendar

Barack Obama

• 11 a.m. today, Reno Events Center, 400 N. Center St.

• 4:30 p.m. today, Churchill County Junior High School, 650 S. Maine St., Fallon

• 7 p.m. today, Carson City Community Center, 851 N. William St.

All events are open to the public, but tickets must be requested in advance at http://nevada.barackobama.com/carsoncityth

John Edwards

• 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Grand Sierra Resort, Silver State Ballroom, Reno

Ron Paul

• 3 p.m. today Comma Coffee located at 312 South Carson Street, Carson City.

Duncan Hunter

• Scheduled to be in Northern Nevada on Thursday through Saturday with stops planned for Carson City, Minden and Gardnerville. More information to be made available this week.