Democrats keep legislative control, fall short of supermajority

LAS VEGAS — Nevada Democrats will maintain their power in the statehouse but have fallen short of securing a two-thirds supermajority in both chambers that would have stripped Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo of his veto power when they convene early next year.

Democrats lost their razor-thin supermajority of 28 seats in the state Assembly after Republicans successfully flipped a competitive district on the southern edge of Las Vegas. All 42 seats in the chamber were up for grabs this year. Democrats won 27 seats and Republicans clinched 15.

In the Senate, Democrats will retain at least 12 of the 21 seats, enough to keep their majority in the chamber. A race for a Las Vegas district was still too early to call on Tuesday, but its outcome can’t tip the balance of power to Republicans. Ten state Senate seats were up this year for election.

Lombardo, in his first term, was not on the Nov. 5 ballot but legislative control was put to the voters in a state where Democrats have controlled both houses of the Legislature all but one session since 2009. A supermajority in both houses would have allowed Democrats to override any vetoes from Lombardo and pass tax and revenue increases without a vote from state GOP lawmakers.

Lombardo, who was elected in 2022, vetoed a record 75 bills in the 2023 session, including one that would have made the western swing state the first in the country to make it a crime to sign certificates falsely stating that a losing candidate has won.

He also axed a slate of gun-control bills, including one that sought to raise the eligible age to possess semiautomatic shotguns and assault weapons from 18 to 21, and another that would have barred firearm ownership within a decade of a gross misdemeanor or felony hate-crime conviction.

The Legislature meets every two years. The next 120-day session begins Feb. 3.