Gov. Sandoval appoints Dean Heller to U.S. Senate
Gov. Brian Sandoval announced today that he is appointing Congressman Dean Heller to fill the unexpired term of John Ensign in the U.S. Senate.
Heller, a long-time resident of Carson City and Carson High School grad, will join the U.S. Senate on May 3, when Ensign's resignation takes effect. Heller was elected to the Nevada's 2nd district congressional seat three times. Before that he served as Secretary of State and represented Carson City in the state assembly.
Retired State Archivist Guy Rocha said that Heller will become the second person with roots in Carson City to serve in the U.S. Senate, after Paul Laxalt.
Rocha also pointed out that those persons appointed to fill unexpired U.S. Senate terms in Nevada don't have a very good record of winning election to those seats.
From Rocha:
Since the adoption of the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1913, and the direct election of U.S. Senators in NV beginning in 1914, four persons have been appointed by the governor to replace deceased senators.
Three of the four appointed senators either lost in the next primary (Democrats Berkeley Bunker in 1942 and Edward Carville in 1946) or in the general election (Republican Ernest S. Brown in 1954).
Only Democrat Charles Henderson won election in Nov. 1918--after his appointment in Jan. 1918--to finish the final two years of Francis G. Newlands unexpired term. Henderson lost his re-election bid in the general election in 1920 for a full six-year term.
Historically, persons appointed to the U.S. Senate in NV when vacancies occurred after the direct election of senators in 1914--other than senators resigning to give the newly-elected senator seniority among incoming freshmen (1942, 1954, 1974)--have fared poorly at the polls.
- Brian Sandoval
- Carson City
- Assembly
- carson
- Carson High
- City
- Constitution
- Democrat
- democrats
- general election
- Governor
- Henderson
- JOIN
- lost
- May
- Nevada
- News
- NV
- Re-Election
- Republican
- roots
- school
- Secretary of State
- Senate
- senators
- state
- U
- Carson High School
- Congressman Dean Heller
- Dean Heller
- election
- Guy Rocha
- John Ensign
- high school