LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nevada emerges as a crucial state in the early stages of the 2024 election, yet it has received relatively less attention compared to Iowa and New Hampshire.
However, that changes this weekend.
A majority of Republican presidential candidates have gathered in Las Vegas to attend the Republican Jewish Coalition’s annual meeting, which holds greater significance this year due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. The front-runner for the party’s nomination, Donald Trump, will address the group and then participate in a campaign organizing event aimed at securing commitments from potential voters for the upcoming caucuses on February 8.
With support from Trump’s allies, Nevada will hold a primary election on February 6, as required by state law, followed by caucuses two days later. The state party will oversee the caucuses, raising concerns about potential voter confusion and allegations of bias in favor of Trump.
While a universal mail ballot will be sent to every resident for the primary, Nevada’s delegates for the nomination will be determined through the party-run caucuses. This means that educating voters about the caucuses will be the responsibility of the party apparatus and the candidates’ campaigns.
“I hate it for our voters because of course they’re going to be confused,” said Will Bradley, a member of the Nevada Republican Party Central Committee. “But I respect that I’m in the minority, and I got outvoted. So I’ll do what I can to help the caucus succeed.”
Trump is making efforts to appeal to potential Nevada caucusgoers, similar to his earlier events in Iowa.
His Nevada state director, Alida Benson, previously served as the state party’s executive director. The party chairman, Michael McDonald, was also involved in controversial activities during the 2020 election when he attempted to nominate Republican voters to the Electoral College in states won by Joe Biden.
McDonald argues that caucuses favor grassroots support and personal campaigning, which is why he pushed for caucuses in Nevada despite the requirement for a presidential primary. This decision was made in response to the Democratic-controlled Legislature’s refusal to consider election-related proposals put forth by Republican Governor Joe Lombardo.
Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, and Senator Tim Scott have opted for the primary, while Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum will compete in the caucuses.
Disagreements have arisen over caucus organizing, which now largely falls under the responsibility of the 17 county Republican parties. The vice chair of the Clark County GOP, who was supposed to oversee the Las Vegas-area caucus sites, resigned last month. Central Committee members in Las Vegas have expressed concerns about a lack of communication from the Clark County GOP regarding the caucuses.
In Elko County, located 430 miles north of Las Vegas, GOP Chairman Lee Hoffman is faced with the challenge of setting up caucus sites that are more than 100 miles away from the county’s central hub. The county, which is larger in size than both Massachusetts and Connecticut combined, is home to 54,000 people. In the general election, nearly one-third of the county’s voting sites relied on mail-only ballots, particularly in remote areas.
While every registered Republican in Nevada will receive a mail ballot for the primary, educating voters about the subsequent caucuses will be more difficult in Elko County.
“All I can say is, we have a lot of work to do between now and the time the caucus comes to educate our Republican voters on the process, getting it organized in terms of locations and so on,” Hoffman said. “That’s going to take some effort.”
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Stern is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a program that places journalists in local newsrooms.
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Follow Stern on X, formerly Twitter: @gabestern326
