It’s no secret that the party in the minority in any democratic form of government is always doing everything it can to change its status and take control. Nearly every part of the agenda is geared toward this goal, and no matter what the discrepancy in seats, the leader of that party can tell you exactly what he or she is doing to become the majority party.
In the Nevada Legislature, the minority parties haven’t had much success in the past decade in accomplishing this task. Try as they might, no matter how many good candidates they field, the Republicans cannot take charge of the Assembly from Speaker Barbara Buckley and the Democrats cannot wrest control of the Senate from Republican Majority Leader Bill Raggio.
Part of the reason for this is the way the district boundaries were created after the 2000 census. The GOP members of the upper house did an excellent job drawing districts that were extremely safe for their incumbents. The Democrats also protected their own, but it left little opportunity for them to pick up the seats needed to gain power.
Knocking off Republican Sen. Sandy Tiffany in 2006 left Minority Leader Dina Titus tantalizingly close to the majority, putting the Democrats behind by only one vote in the 21-seat chamber. However, after the 2007 Session most experts put her chances at picking up that one vote at slim to none.
The Senate seats up for re-election in 2008 on the Republican side are considered to be very safe seats – Bob Beers, Dr. Joe Heck, Bill Raggio and Mike McGinnis. At least they were safe before the Democratic wave created by the public’s excitement to the campaigns of Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama.
Now even the safest Republican districts are losing their vast registration edge on a daily basis. That doesn’t necessarily mean GOP turnout in those areas won’t be as huge and vigorous as it has always been. It does, however, mean that opponents of these candidates will have a much better chance to compete then they did a year ago.
Heck, Raggio and McGinnis are probably still relatively safe – Heck is a military colonel currently serving his country in Iraq and has a no-tax record while Raggio and McGinnis are institutions in their respective communities – so Beers’ senate district will be the focus of pro-Democratic forces this year.
Beers also has a strong no-tax record and will be hard to beat, but his voter registration edge is dwindling fast and Titus has recruited a very good and presentable candidate in Allison Copening, a 43-year-old former PR executive. With a strong grassroots organization and a few good issues, she could make it a race and give the incumbent a run for their money.
The race will be closely watched by every company in Nevada. Although Beers is not loved by gaming and other industries because of his staunch opposition to a gross receipts tax during the 2003 Legislative session, they are also concerned about one party controlling both houses at the Legislature. Lobbyists also like the ability to utilize the Republicans in the Senate to derail legislation they don’t like coming from the Assembly, and vice versa.
One thing is for sure: If you’re a voter in Clark County Senate District 6, your mailbox is going to overflow and you might want to think about changing your phone number before September. You’re going to be deluged from both campaigns as they fight for control of the Nevada Legislature.
