2006 United States House of Representatives elections in Nevada

The Nevada congressional elections of 2006 took place on November 7, 2006, when each of the state's three congressional districts elected a representative to the United States House of Representatives. Nevada was considered a battleground state due to the close victory margins.

2006 United States House of Representatives elections in Nevada

November 7, 2006 (2006-11-07)
All 3 Nevada seats to the United States House of Representatives
Majority party Minority party   Party Democratic Republican Last election 1 2 Seats won 1 2 Seat change Popular vote 287,879 260,317 Percentage 50.08% 45.29%
Democratic   60–70% Republican   40–50%   50–60%

Nevada's three congressional districts

Nevada was one of four states in which the party that won the state's popular vote did not win a majority of seats in 2006, the other states being Indiana, New Mexico, and Wisconsin.

Overview

United States House of Representatives elections in Nevada, 2006
Party		Votes	Percentage	Seats	+/–
	Democratic	287,879	50.08%	1	-
	Republican	260,317	45.29%	2	-
	Independent American	13,107	2.28%	0	-
	Libertarian	8,000	1.39%	0	-
	Independents	5,524	0.96%	0	—
Totals		574,827	100.00%	3	—

District 1

Candidates

Democratic Party

Incumbent Shelley Berkley has served four terms. In Congress, she serves in the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, Veterans' Affairs, and International Relations.

Republican Party

Kenneth Wegner

Libertarian Party

Jim Duensing

Results

2006 1st District congressional election, Nevada

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Shelley Berkley (incumbent)	85,025	64.84%
	Republican	Kenneth Wegner	40,917	31.20%
	Libertarian	Jim Duensing	2,843	2.17%
	Independent American	Darnell Roberts	2,339	1.78%
Majority
Turnout			131,124
	Democratic hold		Swing

District 2

2006 Nevada's 2nd congressional district election

Nominee Dean Heller Jill Derby Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 117,119 104,593 Percentage 50.4% 44.9%

County results Heller:     40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Derby:     40–50%

U.S. Representative before election Jim Gibbons Republican Elected U.S. Representative Dean Heller Republican

Main article: Nevada's 2nd congressional district election, 2006

The 2006 Nevada's 2nd congressional district election was held on November 7 to elect a representative from the Nevada's 2nd congressional district, which covers all of Nevada outside of Clark County, and some parts of Clark County. Republican Party candidate Dean Heller won the election. It was an open seat, because the incumbent, Republican Jim Gibbons, made a successful run for governor of the state.

A bitterly contested Republican primary on August 15, 2006 was won by Secretary of State Dean Heller. The Democratic nominee, Jill Derby, Regent for the University and Community College System of Nevada, had no primary opposition.

In late August, CQPolitics.com analyzed the race: "Although the 2nd District generally leans Republican, Derby's competitive position in the general election was already strengthened by the fact that she was unopposed in the Aug. 15 Democratic primary while the Republicans staged a bruising battle among three well-known candidates."

Primary election

Democratic

Jill Derby had no opposition for the Democratic nomination.

Republican

Campaign

On the Republican side, there was a "fiercely contested and often bruising" three-way race (with two minor candidates raising the total to five candidates). The two major candidates other than Heller were state assemblywoman Sharron Angle was former state Representative Dawn Gibbons, wife of the outgoing incumbent. The Club for Growth poured in over $1 million backing Angle, and ran ads attacking both Heller and Gibbons as being "liberal" and in favor of tax increases.

Results

The official results were:

Republican Primary

Candidate	Votes	%
Dean Heller	24,770	35.90%
Sharron Angle	24,349	35.29%
Dawn Gibbons	17,317	25.10%
Glenn Thomas	1,835	2.66%
Richard Gilster	721	1.05%

Refusal to concede

After the primary, Angle refused to concede, complaining of voting irregularities that disenfranchised many voters in her popular home base of Washoe County, which includes Reno and is by far the district's most populous and vote-rich jurisdiction. Rather than calling for a recount — the typical route for candidates who challenge close election outcomes — Angle demanded to have the entire primary invalidated and held again. CQPolitics.com noted "Some have charged Angle’s decision to call for a special primary was based on economics: Had she demanded a recount, Angle would have been responsible for the cost of the procedure unless the result vindicated her request for it. That would not be the case if the courts were to order a primary do-over."

Exacerbating the disunity of the Nevada GOP, Nevada's Republican Party chairman, Paul Adams, announced his support for Angle's court challenge.

At a September 1 state court hearing, District Judge Bill Maddox rejected Angle's request on grounds that the state court lacks jurisdiction in congressional elections. According to Maddox, only the U.S. House of Representatives has standing to call for a new election. At that point, Angle conceded the race.

General election

Campaign

The bruising GOP primary, as compared to the Democratic situation, was reflected in the cash reserves reported by each candidate in their pre-primary filings with the Federal Election Commission. Derby had $444,000 on hand as of July 26, out of $748,000 raised. Heller had 260,000 left — and that was with 20 days left to go before the actual primary — out of $904,000 in total receipts, which included $108,000 in funds from his personal accounts.

Polls and ratings

The Las Vegas Sun, quoting University of Nevada-Reno political scientist Eric Herzik, noted that the intra-fighting has given the Democratic Party a chance in this otherwise Republican leaning district. "Jill Derby was already doing everything right, and then she gets this gift," he said. "How do you turn a safe district into a competitive one? Fight among yourselves. Republicans here have won because they've stayed united and they continue to turn out. Now you've got partisan infighting, and Adams' leadership is aiding and abetting that - in an already bad year for Republicans."

In early September, CQPolitics.com rated this race as Leans Republican In early October, CQPolitics.com rated it as Republican Favored

A Mason-Dixon poll has shown Heller with a slight edge, but within the margin or error, leading 45% to 42%.

Polling

Source	Date	Jill Derby (D)	Dean Heller (R)	Undecided
Las Vegas Review-Journal	September 25, 2006	42%	45%

Other candidates

There are three non-major party candidates in the race:

• James Krochus, Independent American Party
• Scott Babb, Libertarian
• Daniel Rosen, Independent

External links

• Jill Derby's Congressional campaign site
• Dean Heller's Congressional campaign site
• Daniel Rosen's Congressional campaign site

Results

2006 2nd District congressional election, Nevada

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Dean Heller	117,119	50.35%
	Democratic	Jill Derby	104,593	44.94%
	Independent	Daniel Rosen	5,524	2.37%
	Independent American	James Krochus	5,439	2.34%
Majority
Turnout			232,724
	Republican hold		Swing

District 3

Candidates

Democratic Party

Tessa Hafen is a former press secretary for US Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid.

Republican Party

Incumbent Jon C. Porter is a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Committee on Education and the Workforce. He is the chairman of the Federal Workforce and Agency Organization Subcommittee, which belongs to the full House Government Reform Committee. He is a member of the moderate/liberal Republican Main Street Partnership and is a supporter of stem-cell research.

Libertarian Party

Joseph Silvestri

Endorsements

Tessa Hafen (D)

Individuals

• Wesley Clark, General, 2004 democratic presidential candidate

Election Results

2006 3rd District congressional election, Nevada

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Jon C. Porter (incumbent)	102,232	48.46%
	Democratic	Tessa Hafen	98,261	46.57%
	Independent American	Josh Hansen	5,329	2.53%
	Libertarian	Joseph Silvestri	5,157	2.44%
Majority
Turnout			210,979
	Republican hold		Swing