Nevada State Senate elections, 2020

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2020 Nevada Senate Elections
General	November 3, 2020
Primary	June 9, 2020

Past Election Results

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2020 Elections
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Nevada Democrats lost a seat but kept their majority in the 2020 Senate elections. Ten of the chamber's 21 seats were up in 2020. Heading into the election, Democrats had a 13-8 majority, including a 7-3 majority among the 10 seats up. Republicans gained a net one seat, leaving the chamber's post-election partisan balance at a 12-9 Democratic majority.

The Nevada State Senate was one of 86 state legislative chambers with elections in 2020. A total of 10 seats out of the chamber's 21 seats were up for election in 2020. There are 99 chambers throughout the country. In 2018, 87 out of 99 legislative chambers held elections.

Ballotpedia identified three of the races as battlegrounds. Republicans held one of these districts, while Democrats held two. The three battleground districts were District 5, District 6, and District 15.

This race had the potential to influence the trifecta status of the state. Nevada had been under a Democratic trifecta since 2019 when Democrats took control of the governorship. In order to flip this chamber and break the Democratic trifecta, Republicans needed to gain at least four seats.

Heading into the 2020 elections, Republicans held a majority in more chambers than Democrats. There was a Republican majority in 59 chambers and a Democratic majority in 39 chambers. In the Alaska House, there was a power-sharing agreement between the parties as part of a coalition.

Nevada's 2020 state legislative elections affected partisan control of redistricting following the 2020 census. In Nevada, the state legislature is responsible for drafting both congressional and state legislative district plans. District plans are subject to gubernatorial veto.

This election was a battleground race. Other 2020 battlegrounds included:

Kansas' 3rd Congressional District election, 2020 (August 4 Republican primary) Virginia's 5th Congressional District election, 2020 (June 13 Republican convention) Wisconsin Supreme Court elections, 2020 (February 18 nonpartisan primary)

Election procedure changes in 2020

See also: Changes to election dates, procedures, and administration in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020

Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.

Nevada modified its absentee/mail-in voting procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:

• Absentee/mail-in voting: Mail-in ballots were sent to all registered voters in the general election.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.

Party control

See also: Partisan composition of state senates and State government trifectas

Nevada State Senate
Party		As of November 3, 2020	After November 4, 2020
	Democratic Party	13	12
	Republican Party	8	9
Total		21	21

Districts

See also: Nevada state legislative districts

Use the interactive map below to find your district.

General candidates

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Primary candidates
The candidate list below is based on candidate filing lists provided by the Nevada Secretary of State, the Clark County Election Department, and the Washoe Registrar of Voters on March 13, 2020.

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2020 battleground chamber

See also: State legislative battleground chambers, 2020

The Nevada State Senate was among 24 state legislative chambers Ballotpedia identified as battleground chambers for the 2020 cycle. Click here for more information on state legislative battlegrounds.

What was at stake?

• Republicans needed to gain three seats to take control of the chamber in 2020.

• If Republicans had flipped the chamber, they would have broken the Democratic trifecta. If Democrats had maintained their majorities in the state House and Senate, they would have preserved their trifecta.

Why was it a battleground?

• Seats decided by 10% or less in 2016: The last time this set of seats was up for election, there were two races (20% of the chamber) decided by a margin of 10% or smaller.

• Seats flipped in 2016: The last time this set of seats was up for election, one seat (10% of the chamber) changed partisan control.

• 2018 battleground chamber: The Nevada State Senate was a battleground chamber in 2018. That year, Democrats gained one seat from Republicans and one from an independent. Click here to read more about the 2018 elections.

• History of recent flips: Control of the Nevada State Senate changed twice between 2010 and 2020. Republicans gained a majority in 2014, while Democrats gained a majority in 2016.

• Race ratings: The Cook Political Report rated the Nevada State Senate a likely Democratic chamber in 2020, meaning Republicans had a chance to flip the chamber but Democrats were favored to retain control.

Battleground races

Nevada State Senate Battleground races
Republican seats
District 15
Democratic seats
District 5
District 6

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia identified three battleground races in the Nevada State Senate 2020 elections, one of which was Republican-held seats and two of which were held by a Democrat. Based on analysis of these districts' electoral histories, these races had the potential to be more competitive than other races and could possibly have led to shifts in a chamber's partisan balance.

To determine state legislative battleground races in 2020, Ballotpedia looked for races that fit one or more of the four factors listed below:

1. In the last state legislative election, the winner received less than 55% of the vote.
2. The presidential candidate who won the district in 2016 is of a different party than the most recent state legislative election winner in the district, and the most recent state legislative election winner won by a margin of 10 percentage points or less.
3. The presidential candidate who won the district in 2016 is of a different party than the most recent state legislative election winner in the district, and the incumbent is not on the ballot this year.
4. The presidential candidate who won the district in 2016 is of a different party than the most recent state legislative election winner in the district, and that presidential candidate won the district by a margin of 20 percentage points or more.

District 5

What party controlled the seat heading into the election?

The Democratic Party

Who were the candidates running?

Kristee Watson Carrie Buck

What made this a battleground race?

This was a district where the winner received less than 55% of the vote in the previous state legislative election. In 2016, Joyce Woodhouse (D) received 49.9 percent of the vote and defeated his Republican challenger by 0.9 percentage points. Woodhouse was not able to file for reelection due to term limits

District 6

What party controlled the seat heading into the election?

The Democratic Party

Who were the candidates running?

Nicole Cannizzaro (incumbent) April Becker

What made this a battleground race?

This was a district where the winner received less than 55% of the vote in the previous state legislative election. Nicole Cannizzaro (D) was first elected in 2016 where she received 50.9 percent of the vote and defeated Victoria Seaman (R) by 1.8 percentage points.

District 15

What party controlled the seat heading into the election?

The Republican Party

Who were the candidates running?

Heidi Gansert (incumbent) Wendy Jauregui-Jackins

What made this a battleground race?

This was a district where the winner received less than 55% of the vote in the previous state legislative election, the presidential candidate who won the district in 2016 is of a different party than the most recent state legislative election winner in the district, and the most recent state legislative election winner won by a margin of 10 percentage points or less. Incumbent Heidi Gansert (R) was first elected in 2016 with 53 percent of the vote and defeated Devon Reese (D) by 11.1 percentage points. Hillary Clinton won the district with 47.1 percent of the vote, defeating Donald Trump by 2.8 points.

Incumbents who were not re-elected

See also: Annual State Legislative Competitiveness Report: Vol. 10, 2020

Incumbents defeated in the general election

No incumbents lost in the Nov. 3 general election.

Incumbents defeated in primary elections

No incumbents lost in the June 9 primaries. As of 2020, No incumbent Senator had been defeated in a primary since 2012.

Retiring incumbents

There were three open seats where the incumbent legislator did not file for re-election in 2020. Those incumbents were:

Name	Party	Office
Marcia Washington	Democratic	Senate District 4
Joyce Woodhouse	Democratic	Senate District 5
David Parks	Democratic	Senate District 7

Three open seats was roughly average relative to the preceding five election cycles. The table below shows the number of open seats in each election held between 2010 and 2020.

Open Seats in Nevada State Senate elections: 2010 - 2020
Year	Total seats	Open seats	Seats with incumbents running for re-election
2020	10	3 (30 percent)	7 (70 percent)
2018	11	5 (45 percent)	6 (55 percent)
2016	11	1 (9 percent)	10 (91 percent)
2014	11	1 (9 percent)	10 (91 percent)
2012	12	7 (58 percent)	5 (42 percent)
2010	11	6 (55 percent)	5 (45 percent)

Redistricting in Nevada

See also: Redistricting in Nevada

In Nevada, both congressional and state legislative district boundaries are drawn by the state legislature. The lines are subject to veto by the governor.

Under a state law enacted in 2019, state prison inmates are counted as residents of their home addresses for redistricting purposes.

Process to become a candidate

See also: Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Nevada

See statutes: Title 24, Chapter 293 of the Nevada Revised Statutes

A candidate in Nevada may access the ballot in one of three ways: as a major party candidate, as a minor party candidate, or as an independent candidate. Write-in candidates are not permitted in this state. Voters can only cast a vote for candidates whose names appear on the ballot.

Major party candidates

A major party candidate must have been affiliated with his or her party by December 31 of the year preceding the election. If a candidate changes his or her affiliation after that date, he or she can no longer run as a major party candidate.

Major party candidates are nominated via primary election. There are two ways in which a major party candidate may be placed on the primary election ballot:

• by filing a declaration of candidacy and paying the filing fee during the candidate filing period, which begins on the first Monday in March and ends on the second Friday in March following that Monday; the declaration must include the following:
  • the residential address of the candidate, which must be in the appropriate district of the state corresponding to the office being sought
  • a copy of a government-issued photo ID, a current utility bill, bank statement, paycheck, or document issued by a government entity in order to prove the residence address listed on the declaration
  • the candidate's Social Security number, license number, or state identification number
• by having 10 or more registered voters file a certificate of candidacy on behalf of any registered voter they wish to nominate as a candidate for their major party; this must be done no earlier than the first Monday in February and no later than the first Monday in March preceding the primary election (if nominated in this way, the candidate must file an acceptance of candidacy with the required filing fee during the candidate filing period)

The filing fees mentioned above vary according to the office being sought and can be paid by cash, cashier's check, or certified check. Personal checks, campaign checks, and credit cards are not acceptable forms of payment. The filing fees are detailed in the table below.

Filing fees
Office sought	Filing fee
United States Senator	$500
United States Representative and Governor of Nevada	$300
Nevada state executive offices other than governor	$200
Nevada Senator and Nevada Assemblyman	$100

If the candidate is seeking office in the United States House of Representatives or Nevada State Legislature in a district within a single county, he or she must file with the county clerk of that county. Candidates for all other offices must file with the Nevada Secretary of State.

Minor party candidates

Minor parties must file a list of candidates with the Nevada Secretary of State before any minor party candidates can file individually. This list must be signed in the presence of a notary public by the party officer named to do so on the minor party's certificate of existence. The list must be filed during the candidate filing period, which starts on the first Monday in March and ends on the second Friday in March following that Monday.

Once the candidate list has been submitted to the Nevada Secretary of State, a minor party candidate can file his or her declaration of candidacy and pay the required filing fee (detailed above). These must be filed during the candidate filing period. If the candidate is seeking office in the United States House of Representatives or Nevada State Legislature in a district within a single county, he or she must file with the county clerk of that county. Candidates for all other offices must file with the Nevada Secretary of State.

Minor party candidates are not permitted to participate in the primary election. Minor parties nominate their candidates to be placed on the general election ballot and may field only one candidate for each office appearing on the ballot.

Independent candidates

Independent candidates may run only in the general election. Independent candidates must petition to be placed on the ballot. This may be done in one of two ways:

• by submitting a petition containing signatures of registered voters equal in number to at least 1 percent of the total votes cast at the last general election for the same office the candidate seeks
• by submitting a petition containing 250 signatures of registered voters if the candidate seeks statewide office, or containing 100 registered voters' signatures if the candidate seeks any other office

Before circulating a petition, a candidate must file a copy of the petition with the Nevada Secretary of State after January 2 of the year of the election. The petition may be circulated as soon as the copy has been filed. The completed petition must then be filed with the counties where the petition was circulated in order to be verified. In order to have the petitions verified in time to file them during the candidate filing period, which starts on the first Monday in March and ends on the third Friday in June preceding the general election, the petitions must be submitted to the counties 10 business days before the last day of the candidate filing period. A verified petition may then be filed with the declaration of candidacy and filing fee with the Nevada Secretary of State unless the candidate is seeking office in a district existing entirely within one county. Such candidates file all documents and fees with the county clerk of the appropriate county.

2020 ballot access requirements

The table below details filing requirements for Nevada State Senate candidates in the 2020 election cycle.

Filing requirements for state legislative candidates, 2020
Chamber name	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
Nevada State Senate	All candidates	N/A	$100.00	3/13/2020	Source

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

To be eligible to serve in the Nevada State Senate, a candidate must be:

• A U.S. citizen at the time of filing
• 21 years old at the filing deadline time
• A one-year resident of Nevada preceding the election
• A resident for 30 days of the senate district from which elected at the filing deadline time
• A qualified voter. A qualified voter is someone who is:

* A U.S. citizen

* A resident of Nevada for at least 6 months prior to the next election, and 30 days in the district or county

* At least 18 years old by the next election

Salaries and per diem

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

State legislative salaries, 2024
Salary	Per diem
$130/legislative day	The exact amount members receive for per diem is unknown.

When sworn in

See also: When state legislators assume office after a general election

Nevada legislators assume office on the first Wednesday after the first Monday in November (the day after election day).

Nevada political history

Trifectas

A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government.

Nevada Party Control: 1992-2025
Five years of Democratic trifectas  •  Two years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25
Governor	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	R	R	R
Senate	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D
House	D	D	D	S	S	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D

Presidential politics in Nevada

2016 Presidential election results

U.S. presidential election, Nevada, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes	Electoral votes
	Democratic	Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine	47.9%	539,260	6
	Republican	Donald Trump/Mike Pence	45.5%	512,058	0
	Libertarian	Gary Johnson/Bill Weld	3.3%	37,384	0
	Independent American	Darrell Lane Castle/Scott Bradley	0.5%	5,268	0
	Other	Rocky De La Fuente/Michael Steinberg	0.2%	2,552	0
	-	"None of these candidates"	2.6%	28,863	0
Total Votes				1,125,385	6
Election results via: Nevada Secretary of State

Voter information

How the primary works

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Nevada has a closed primary system, in which the selection of a party's candidates in an election is limited to registered party members.

Poll times

All polling places in Nevada are open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.

Registration requirements

Check your voter registration status here.

To register to vote in Nevada, each applicant must be must a citizen of the United States, a resident of Nevada for at least 30 days before the election, and at least 18 years old by the day of the election.

Seventeen-year-olds can preregister to vote. Anyone who has been declared mentally incompetent by a court may not register to vote.

A voter registration application can be completed in person at the county clerk’s office, the Department of Motor Vehicles, other social service agencies, or college campuses. In-person registration must be completed 28 days before regular elections; registration forms submitted by mail must be postmarked by the same day. Online applications must be submitted by the Thursday before regular elections.

Nevada also allows same-day registration.

Automatic registration

Nevada automatically registers eligible individuals to vote through the Department of Motor Vehicles.

Online registration

See also: Online voter registration

Nevada has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.

Same-day registration

Nevada allows same-day voter registration at polling places during early voting and on election day.

Residency requirements

In order to register to vote in Nevada, applicants must be a resident of the state for at least 30 days prior to the election.

Verification of citizenship

See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States

Nevada does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. An individual applying to register to vote must attest that they are a U.S. citizen under penalty of perjury.

All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment. As of November 2024, five states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, and New Hampshire — had passed laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration. However, only two of those states' laws were in effect, in Arizona and New Hampshire. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allowed noncitizens to vote in some local elections as of November 2024. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters.

Verifying your registration

The Nevada Secretary of State’s office allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website.

Voter ID requirements

Nevada does not require voters to present identification while voting, in most cases. A voter in Nevada must sign his or her name in the election board register at his or her polling place. The signature is compared with the signature on the voter's original application to vote or another form of identification, such as a driver's license, a state identification card, military identification, or another government-issued ID.

Early voting

Nevada permits early voting. Learn more by visiting this website.

Early voting permits citizens to cast ballots in person at a polling place prior to an election. In states that permit no-excuse early voting, a voter does not have to provide an excuse for being unable to vote on Election Day. States that allow voters to cast no-excuse absentee/mail-in ballots in person are counted as no-excuse early voting states.

As of February 2024, 47 states and the District of Columbia permitted no-excuse early voting.

Absentee voting

All voters are eligible to vote absentee in Nevada. There are no special eligibility requirements for voting absentee. County and city clerks deliver absentee/mail-in ballots automatically to all active registered voters in every election.

See also

• Nevada State Senate
• Nevada State Legislature
• State legislative elections, 2020

External links

Suggest a link

• Nevada State Legislature

Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Nevada State Senate

Leadership

Majority Leader:Nicole Cannizzaro

Senators

District 1

Michelee Crawford (D)

District 2

Edgar Flores (D)

District 3

Rochelle Nguyen (D)

District 4

Dina Neal (D)

District 5

Carrie Buck (R)

District 6

Nicole Cannizzaro (D)

District 7

Roberta Lange (D)

District 8

Marilyn Loop (D)

District 9

Melanie Scheible (D)

District 10

Fabian Donate (D)

District 11

Lori Rogich (R)

District 12

Julie Pazina (D)

District 13

Skip Daly (D)

District 14

Ira Hansen (R)

District 15

Angie Taylor (D)

District 16

Lisa Krasner (R)

District 17

Robin Titus (R)

District 18

John Steinbeck (R)

District 19

John Ellison (R)

District 20

Jeff Stone (R)

District 21

James Ohrenschall (D)

Democratic Party (13)

Republican Party (8)