Nevada Politics Briefly June 2

Tea Party candidate files business bankruptcy

LAS VEGAS (AP) - A company controlled by Nevada U.S. Senate candidate Jon Scott Ashjian has filed for bankruptcy protection in a bid to block foreclosure on a parcel of land in Las Vegas.

Bankruptcy Court offices were closed Monday when Ashjian Development LLC filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy electronically.

Ashjian's lawyer, Barry Levinson, tells the Las Vegas Sun the filing was made to block foreclosure of land in northwest Las Vegas that Ashjian and other investors want to develop into a mini-storage facility.

The bankruptcy filing puts company assets at less than $50,000. Nevada National Bank has asserted a claim of $750,000 for the land.

Ashjian is the Tea Party of Nevada candidate against Democratic Sen. Harry Reid.

Reid, Sandoval, report similar funds

(AP) - Democrat Rory Reid and Republican Brian Sandoval are reporting similar fundraising success in the Nevada gubernatorial race during the last reporting period.

Both say they raised nearly $1 million in the January through May period.

Reid, who's been raising money for more than year, has an advantage in cash on hand going into the general election contest. His campaign Tuesday said he'll report raising a total $4.4 million, and having $2.6 million on hand.

Sandoval's campaign says he's raised about $1.8 million total since he entered the race last fall, and has $575,000 cash on hand.

Both are considered their party's front-runners in the June 8 primary.

1 GOP Senate candidate withdraws

(AP) - One in a dozen of Republican U.S. Senate hopefuls in Nevada is withdrawing from the race a week before the primary election.

Gary Bernstein on Tuesday threw his support to John Chachas, a former Wall Street investment banker who grew up in Ely and returned to Nevada to run for the seat held by Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Bernstein was a long-shot in the race that drew 12 GOP candidates.

Though he has withdrawn, his name still appears on the ballot.

Early voting began May 22 in advance of the June 8 primary.

Former state Sen. Sue Lowden, former Assemblywoman Sharron Angle, and Las Vegas businessman Danny Tarkanian are the Republican front runners.

Early voter turnout low in primary

(AP) - Early voter turnout for Nevada's June 8 primary is about 12 percent so far.

The secretary of state's office says roughly 7 percent of registered voters have taken advantage of early voting opportunities that began May 22. Another 5 percent are estimated to have voted by absentee ballot.

Early voting ends Friday. The last chance to vote after that will be primary election day Tuesday.

Statewide, about 79,300 voters have cast ballots as of Monday.

Voters will be deciding a host of political contests, including Republican nominees for governor and the U.S. Senate.