Nevada’s governor race is the biggest-ticket merchandise on voters’ ballots this fall. But what the next governor can accomplish will rely largely on this 12 months’s downballot state Assembly and Senate races.
Donors poured tens of millions of {dollars} between July and September into legislative races as Democrats search to shield and even broaden their majorities in both chambers, while Republicans goal to keep those majorities from changing into veto-proof.
Democrats maintain 27 of 42 Assembly seats and 13 of 21 state Senate seats. The get together is one seat shy of the coveted two-thirds supermajority in both chambers, which would permit Democratic lawmakers to override vetoes or raise taxes without Republican support.
The newest spherical of marketing campaign finance reports filed last week reveals that money has clustered around just a handful of aggressive seats. Candidates in 9 of the state’s 53 legislative races acquired roughly $2.4 million in direct contributions, more than half of the roughly $4.7 million donated to all legislative candidates.
Only one of these races options a Republican, Assm. Rebecca Edgeworth (R-Las Vegas), looking for re-election, while another three — Assembly Districts 2, 9 and 41 — are open seats. The other 5 races characteristic Democratic incumbents being focused by Republicans.
Of those 9 races, the median quantity raised among Republican candidates was $91,000 while the median among Democratic candidates was roughly $190,000.
Overall, Democrats — who have more incumbent elected officers, which tends to correlate with bigger fundraising numbers — raised roughly $3.1 million in direct marketing campaign contributions in the quarter, in contrast to Republicans’ $1.6 million. Democrats also outspent Republicans by roughly $2 million in whole across all legislative races.
Though marketing campaign donations do not decide election outcomes, they offer insight into where donors are directing their support and candidates’ capability to put their title in entrance of voters through paid media. The numbers can also help reveal the connections between state lawmakers and political entities jockeying to develop relationships before the upcoming legislative session.
Republicans leaned closely on support from on line casino firms, as effectively as real estate and construction teams.
On the Democratic aspect, candidates acquired support from a big selection of liberal-leaning unions and advocacy teams.
Some teams gave important donations to both main events, including real estate industry teams such as the Southern Nevada Home Builders Association and the Nevada Realtors PAC. A self-driving car company that is a first-time donor in Nevada this cycle, Waymo, gave more than $75,000 since July to legislative candidates from both events.
Perhaps most notable among the bipartisan donors was the Clark County Education Association (CCEA), which is backing Gov. Joe Lombardo’s (R) re-election bid but also gave lots of of 1000’s of {dollars} to leaders of both events’ legislative caucuses.
The Nevada Independent dug into the most latest spherical of marketing campaign finance reports to see what billionaires, unions and PACs are sending money to which candidates. Continue studying to see what we realized.
Following the chief
Assembly Speaker Pro Tempore Elaine Marzola (D-Las Vegas) was the prime legislative fundraiser in the third quarter of 2026, bringing in practically $270,000 in direct marketing campaign contributions. Marzola is not in a aggressive race — she’s going through elementary college instructor Patsy Carvalho (R), who introduced in just $1,525 in the same period — and is on monitor to become the next Assembly speaker in 2027.
Marzola’s has a marketing campaign battle chest of roughly $379,000. As a caucus chief, she is expected to help shore up Democratic energy in the decrease chamber.
A PAC run by Marzola, Nevada Brave, acquired $600,000 in September from Strategic Horizons, a CCEA-affiliated PAC.
As it has achieved all through this election cycle, CCEA performed both sides with fundraising. Strategic Horizons also despatched $100,000 to GSD PAC, run by Assm. Lisa Cole (R-Las Vegas), despite GSD PAC distributing money to some Republican candidates that CCEA endorsed against this cycle.
The highest fundraiser among non-incumbent candidates was Ryan Hampton, a substance abuse restoration advocate with a national profile who raised more than $220,000 and has roughly $38,000 money on hand. His Republican opponent, Erica Neely, a small business proprietor, raised roughly $49,000.
Other prime fundraisers were Sens. Marilyn Dondero Loop (D-Las Vegas), who introduced in roughly $270,000 in her re-election bid against Republican businessman George Harris, who raised $160,000 himself, and Melanie Scheible (D-Las Vegas), who raised roughly $200,000 as she wards off a problem from Republican attorney Maria Thompson, who raised $190,000.
Scheible and Dondero Loop are in two of the three races with the greatest fundraising totals. The other was in Senate District 12, where Sen. Julie Pazina (D-Las Vegas) is going through a problem from Republican small businessman Rafael Arroyo. Pazina raised $250,000 in the third quarter, while Arroyo raised roughly $101,000.
The Assembly race that introduced in the most money was Assembly District 35, where Republican incumbent Edgeworth is looking for to shield her spot in a blue-leaning district against Democrat Joe Spica, a Strip employee who is a member of the Culinary Workers Union Local 226. Edgeworth introduced in roughly $180,000, while Spica introduced in roughly $137,000.
Unions versus business teams?
Edgeworth and Spica’s race was one of several where donors were sharply divided between unions on the Democratic aspect and business and real estate teams on the GOP aspect.
In the open Assembly District 41, one of the cycle’s most aggressive races, on line casino pit boss Kelly Chapman, a Republican, faces social research instructor Vinny Spotleson, a Democrat and member of the Democratic Socialists of America. Chapman raised $91,000 in the quarter, including huge checks from a number of casinos, PACs representing Nevada resorts and realtors, Nevada Gold Mines and the Vegas Chamber.
Spotleson, who is not taking company PAC money, raised $75,000 thanks to hefty contributions from Marzola, other lawmakers and unions such as the Nevada State Education Association.
The same dynamic is unfolding in the open Assembly District 29, where business teams are looking for to block a victory for progressive Democrat Alex Pereszlenyi, the front-runner against Republican Joe Ludwig. The Vegas and Henderson chambers of commerce, the Nevada Resort PAC, the Keystone Corporation and a number of on line casino corporations donated to Ludwig in the third quarter of 2026. Ludwig raised roughly $26,000 total, in contrast to Pereszlenyi’s roughly $68,000.
Pereszlenyi was one of a number of Democratic legislative candidates to obtain a hefty donation from Ross Boucher, a software program developer who helped create Stripe, a financial transaction processing software. Boucher had never donated in Nevada political races before this cycle but donated $15,000 to both the Nevada Senate Democrats and the Assembly Democratic Caucus in July.
In another open race, Assembly District 2 in Las Vegas’ Summerlin space, Republican Drew Teitelbaum introduced in roughly $68,000 — more than double the roughly $32,000 haul of his Democratic opponent, Kamilah Bywaters. Teitelbaum’s sole $10,000 donation, the most attainable contribution, came from the Republican Jewish Coalition, while Bywaters’ sole $10,000 donation came from Marzola.
One race breaking the unions versus business teams pattern was Assembly District 37, where Assm. Shea Backus (D-Las Vegas) introduced in $130,000 in her re-election bid. Backus acquired money from business teams such as Nevada Gold Mines, Southwest Gas, AirBnb and the Vegas Chamber but also unions and advocacy teams. Her opponent, Clark County Republican chair Jill Douglass, acquired roughly $38,000 in direct contributions and loaned herself $20,000.
Notable donors
The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) grew to become a important donor in Nevada legislative races this 12 months, after opening its Nevada workplace in 2025 and internet hosting Vice President J.D. Vance (R) for a closed-door occasion in Las Vegas in August.
The RJC Nevada PAC gave contributions of $10,000 each to six GOP candidates, as effectively as Lombardo and a number of Republican PACs. Campaign finance filings for RJC Nevada show the PAC acquired $150,000 from Amusement Industry, Inc., a California-based real estate developer, and $15,000 from Ben Farahi, a Reno-based businessman and former on line casino proprietor.
RJC’s national PAC also gave $10,000 to Douglass — its first donation in Nevada since 2016.
Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson (D) has now donated to both candidates in Senate District 8, giving Harris $2,000 in August after giving Dondero Loop $1,000 in April. Harris also acquired $5,000 from Robert Beadles, a conservative activist and election conspiracy theorist.
Another main Republican donor was Ben Horowitz, the co-founder of enterprise capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, which has been a lead investor in Flock and other AI and knowledge heart corporations. He and his spouse, Felicia, who dwell in Las Vegas, shelled out most $10,000 contributions each to Harris, Edgeworth, Thompson and Arroyo.
Companies that could see new rules on their industries from the state Legislature next 12 months also got in the combine.
Waymo, the self-driving car company, made its first political donations in Nevada this cycle, giving roughly $75,000 to 22 legislative candidates from both events. Data heart company Switch gave $23,000 in whole to a number of Democratic candidates and caucuses. AirBnB gave $11,000 to 5 legislative candidates in the third quarter, all Democrats, after making a number of donations to legislative Republicans last 12 months.
Real property teams also got concerned in races, particularly as state lawmakers are contemplating capping company homebuying next session, for which Lombardo has declared his support.
Nevada Realtors made important contributions, although primarily to Democrats — giving money to Dondero Loop, Pazina, Backus, Carter and a Marzola PAC. Nevada Realtors’ only Republican legislative candidate to obtain a direct donation was Teitelbaum.
Isabella Aldrete, Piper Heath and Eric Neugeboren contributed reporting to this story.