candidate

By Andrew Doughman
CARSON CITY — Secretary of State Ross Miller today announced that a special election for Nevada’s congressional district two will be open to all candidates.
“You might as call this a ballot royale,” he said.
Miller’s decision allows for any candidate to be on the ballot for the Sept. 13 election. The state Republican party has favored an interpretation of state law that would allow state parties to pick a single candidate of their choice.

By Sean Whaley
RENO – Texas Congressman Ron Paul said today he will decide “before June” whether to make another bid for president as a Republican candidate in 2012.
Paul, 75, in an interview before a breakfast at the Washoe County Republican Party office, formed an official exploratory committee on Tuesday in advance of GOP debates set for May.

CARSON CITY – As Gov. Brian Sandoval today said it is premature to speculate on who he will appoint to replace GOP U.S. Senator John Ensign, Democrats in the Nevada Legislature said they will seek a resolution urging a “fair, open, and transparent process for appointing a temporary replacement.”

CARSON CITY – Recently announced U.S. Senate candidate Shelley Berkley spoke to the Nevada Legislature today, stressing education, infrastructure and energy independence as ways to create jobs and get the state back on track.

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a Republican who is evaluating a run for president in 2012, said today he would be willing to reconsider whether Yucca Mountain is a suitable site for the long-term disposal of nuclear waste.

CARSON CITY – The third of three campaign finance reform bills being pushed by Secretary of State Ross Miller this session passed out of an Assembly committee today, but an important provision regulating political action committees was removed.
Lawmakers say the deletion of a key provision of Assembly Bill 81 is only temporary.

CARSON CITY – A major campaign finance reform bill that would require most candidates to file their contribution and expense reports electronically narrowly passed out of an Assembly panel today on an 8-7 vote.
The bill would also move filing deadlines up to give voters more time to review the political donation and expense information before casting their ballots.

CARSON CITY – A major campaign finance reform bill that would require most candidates to file their contribution and expense reports electronically narrowly passed out of an Assembly panel today on an 8-7 vote.
The bill would also move filing deadlines up to give voters more time to review the political donation and expense information before casting their ballots.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – An organization that wants to see Yucca Mountain used as a temporary nuclear waste storage site with a research center to explore reprocessing has proposed an amendment to a bill in the Legislature to move its Energy Park idea forward.

CARSON CITY — Bethany Drysdale, who has promoted Nevada's tourism attractions for more than five years for the Nevada Commission on Tourism will head the Public Relations department beginning April 23, Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki announced this week.

Drysdale has served as Public Relations specialist for NCOT since October 2005. She succeeds Chris Chrystal, who is retiring as manager April 22 after a 48-year career in news reporting and public relations that included 13 years with the Commission.

By Elizabeth Crum / Nevada News Bureau
Nearly 600 days before the general election and wearing a bright purple suit while proving she is no shrinking violet, Sharron Angle today cheerfully fielded tough questions from nine journalists for nearly an hour.
The sole (so far) candidate for Nevada’s second congressional district held the first press conference of her campaign in a small conference room at the Best Western hotel across from the Reno, NV airport.

Former Nevada Governor and RNC Committeeman Bob List said late this afternoon that he is not ready to either privately or publicly endorse a candidate to replace soon-to-be departed state GOP chairman Mark Amodei until Governor Sandoval chimes in with his preferred choice.
“Governor Sandoval is the leader of the state party,” said List. “I will wait to hear who he thinks can best fill Chairman Amodei’s shoes before saying anything more on this matter.”

According to Nevada News Bureau, Republican Mark Amodei will announce soon that he is running for the Congressional District 2 seat currently held by Rep. Dean Heller.

The speculation is that Heller will make a run for the U.S. Senate seat held by John Ensign, who announced earlier this week he would not seek reelection to avoid an ugly campaign after his well-publicized sex scandal.

Two reliable sources have confirmed that Congressman Dean Heller said this week he is definitely committed to running in the U.S. Senate race. Heller’s office would not confirm the news this morning when contacted.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – State Controller Kim Wallin is seeking new authority from the Nevada Legislature to collect from those who owe the state money.

Here in the home of the politically audacious, Rory Reid has tested the bounds of boldness and possibly crossed into the land of the unethical. (Whether or not the campaign contribution law Rory thwarted should be on the books - many think it should not – is a topic for another day.)

CARSON CITY – Secretary of State Ross Miller made his pitch for campaign finance reform before an Assembly committee today, saying that while his two bills are extensive and complex at 155 pages combined, the many provisions are necessary because, “we are behind the curve.”
Miller, in testimony before the Assembly Legislative Operations and Elections Committee, said Nevada should provide increased transparency to voters about the campaign contributions and expenses of the candidates for public office.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
A national movement to guarantee the presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states combined gained steam today with the financial support of a billionaire businessman who has committed resources to enacting the concept across the country, including Nevada.

By GrandViewOutdoors.com
A federal agency has announced $23 million to protect grasslands in Wyoming, Colorado and Montana for sage grouse, a chicken-sized bird whose males are known for flashy mating displays.

It would be offered as matching funds, with state, local and tribal governments or non-government agencies providing the other $23 million.

By Nevada News Bureau staff
Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley declined again today to commit to a race for the U.S. Senate in 2012 after poll results show Rep. Dean Heller with a commanding lead over incumbent John Ensign in a GOP primary.

Thirteen applications for the position of Carson City Justice of the Peace were submitted to the city by the Feb. 11 deadline.

Applications for the position of Carson City Justice of the Peace / Municipal Court Judge were sought by the Board of Supervisors. The position is to fill the vacancy created by retiring judge Robey Willis whose last day is March 12.

The applicants and their current or last employer are:

Applications for the position of Carson City Justice of the Peace / Municipal Court Judge are being accepted through Feb. 11 by the Board of Supervisors. The position is to fill the vacancy created by retiring judge Robey Willis whose last day is March 12.

Applications will be available for downloading from the City’s website at www.carson.org or may be obtained in person from the City Manager’s Office, 201 N. Carson Street, Suite 2.

Businessman and radio host Herman Cain stopped in Las Vegas last week as part of his preparation for a possible presidential run in 2012. The Republican is the first potential candidate so far to have created an exploratory committee, often the first step for those who hope to win their party’s nomination.
Cain has been traveling the country and testing the waters, generally eschewing large events with significant media coverage in favor of intimate settings with the conservative activists and Tea Party groups that constitute much of the GOP base.

By Andrew Doughman / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Secretary of State Ross Miller today appointed Scott F. Gilles as deputy elections officer. He steps into the role after his predecessor, Matt Griffin, resigned this past December to return to private practice.

By Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Gov.-elect Brian Sandoval today announced he will appoint Lucas Foletta as his general counsel.
As a former assistant U.S. attorney for the district of Nevada, Foletta has prosecuted mortgage fraud and identity theft matters on behalf of the U.S. government. A graduate of Wake Forest University School of Law, Foletta is also a former law clerk to Sandoval when he served previously as a federal judge.

By Nevada News Bureau staff
CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons has appointed Sue Lowden to the Nevada State Board of Medical Examiners. Lowden has lived and worked in Nevada for more than 30 years. She is a former Nevada state senator who recently ran in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Long-time Republican political operative Sig Rogich said today that Sarah Palin is not a viable candidate for president in 2012.
Rogich, who was involved in the campaigns of Ronald Reagan and both Bush presidents, said Palin, a Tea Party favorite and former Republican Alaska governor, is unelectable.

CARSON CITY – The Nevada Secretary of State’s office today ruled in favor of the Assembly Democratic Caucus regarding a complaint about its failure to report the receipt of funds from its members.
The caucus did not report more than $120,000 received from Assembly Democrats on its campaign contribution and expenditure reports filed this year.

Three days after Senator John Ensign announced that he plans to run for re-election in 2012 despite ongoing ethics investigations into his conduct, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) has dismissed a watchdog group’s complaint against Ensign re: a $96,000 payment his parents made to the family of his former mistress, Cynthia Hampton.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Newly elected state Sen. Joe Hardy, R-Boulder City, has requested the drafting of legislation to repeal Nevada’s minimum wage law.