Nevada 2010 Election Results

Nevada held its general election on November 2, 2010, deciding 53 legislative seats and 6 statewide offices led by the governorship. No chamber changed party control.

Highlights

• Divided government held: Republicans kept the governorship and Democrats kept both chambers, but Assembly Democrats lost their two-thirds majority. The split carried into redistricting, as Governor Sandoval vetoed the Democrats' maps in 2011 and court-appointed special masters drew the lines.
• Brian Sandoval (R) beat Rory Reid (D) by about 12 points for the open governorship, campaigning on an oft-repeated pledge of no new taxes. Reid, son of U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, was overshadowed by his father's re-election fight, and his last name was the reason most often cited for his loss. Sandoval's pledge set up the key debate with lawmakers over a budget projected to be billions of dollars short.
• Republicans gained seats in both chambers. The Assembly went from 28-14 to 26-16 and the Senate from 12-9 to 11-10, with 3 Democratic seats changing hands:
  • Mark Sherwood (R) unseated Ellen Spiegel (D) in Assembly District 21 by about 410 votes.
  • Pete Livermore (R) won the open Assembly District 40 seat over Robin L. Williamson (D) by about 500 votes.
  • Michael Roberson (R) unseated Sen. Joyce Woodhouse (D) in Clark County Senate District 5 by about 4 points, the only Senate seat to flip.
• Every statewide incumbent on the ballot won re-election: Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki (R), Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto (D), Secretary of State Ross Miller (D), Treasurer Kate Marshall (D), and Controller Kim Wallin (D).
• Voters rejected all 4 measures on the ballot. Question 1, which asked voters whether to keep electing judges, drew about 42%. Question 2, which would have allowed an intermediate appeals court, came closest at about 47%, while voters also turned down a sales and use tax change in Question 3 and an eminent domain amendment in Question 4.

Legislature

• Assembly (42 seats): 28 D, 14 R before the election, 26 D, 16 R after; control stayed with Democrats.
• Senate (21 seats): 12 D, 8 R, 1 other or vacant before the election, 11 D, 10 R after; control stayed with Democrats.

Statewide races

Legislative races

Ballot measures