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Leslie resigns state Senate seat to run in new District 15
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LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
Updated: Feb. 16, 2012 | 10:01 a.m.
In a surprise move aimed at boosting Democrats' chances of keeping control of the state Senate, Sen. Sheila Leslie on Wednesday resigned her safe Reno seat to launch a campaign against Republican state Sen. Greg Brower in a new, competitive Northern Nevada district.
The sudden maneuver puts four Senate districts at the center of the battle between Democrats and Republicans to win a majority in the upper house in 2012.
In Southern Nevada, the three seats in play include one new district and two held by Democrats who don't plan to run for re-election.
Now, Democrats hold a slim 11-10 edge over Republicans in the Senate.
An overall shift of one seat for the GOP would flip control and affect policies from education to the economy. The Assembly is controlled by Democrats, 26-16, and is expected to remain so after the 2012 election.
State Sen. Mo Denis, D-Las Vegas, and head of the Senate Democratic Caucus, said Leslie's announcement she would challenge Brower for the new Senate District 15 improves the odds for Democrats to not only maintain control of the Senate but also increase their majority.
"I think it gives us an opportunity to expand," Denis said. "We have said all along that Senate District 15 is winnable with the right candidate. And Sheila is definitely the right type of candidate."
Jodi Stephens, executive director of the Senate Republican caucus, said the GOP is on track with its endorsed candidates to pick up a couple of seats and has the advantage in the Brower race.
"We have a real shot at taking over the Senate," Stephens said.
A well-known lawmaker, Leslie has been on the ballot every election since 1998 when she first won an Assembly seat. She served six two-year terms before winning a Senate seat in 2010.
Leslie said she would move into a house she had bought to compete in the newly drawn district, where Republicans have a slight edge over Democrats, 40 percent to 38 percent of registered voters. She bought the house at the end of 2010, thinking it would be in her current district.
In an interview, Leslie said she gave up her seat in the middle of her four-year term for personal and political reasons. She wants to live in her new home and help Democrats keep the Senate. Efforts to recruit another strong Democrat to challenge Brower apparently went nowhere.
"It's risky for me personally, but the political opportunity is there to pick up this new Senate seat and change it from an R seat to a D seat," Leslie said. "I think I can be competitive in this district."
President Barack Obama and U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., both won a majority of votes in the district in 2008 and 2010, Democrats note. Leslie thinks she has crossover appeal with women, too.
"Republican women really care about education and about the social safety net," said Leslie, a liberal lawmaker who coordinates speciality courts that handle everything from drug and DUI cases to mental health and juvenile cases. "People know me here in Washoe County."
Brower, a former two-term member of the Assembly, served as a freshman with Leslie. He was appointed in 2011 to complete the Senate term of Bill Raggio, R-Reno, who resigned. In 2002, Brower lost re-election in the GOP primary to Sharron Angle, who later won the Assembly seat.
Brower, a former U.S. attorney for Nevada, has been endorsed by the Senate Republican caucus, which is counting on winning the new Senate seat as part of its takeover strategy.
Brower said he had expected a competitive race but called Leslie's move a "political stunt."
"It's unusual for a senator to resign to try and achieve a partisan goal," Brower said in an interview. "I don't know what to make of it. I think it's fair to say we did expect to have a real race, but we didn't expect this sort of political stunt. It looks like a partisan play to me."
Leslie's current district, which will be renamed Senate District 13, is a safe Democratic seat.
Assemblywoman Debbie Smith, D-Sparks, and Assemblyman Dave Bobzien, D-Reno, are both considering running for Leslie's former seat but won't run against each other.
Most insiders expect Smith to run for the Senate seat, moving up instead of running for the Assembly a sixth and final time because of term limits.
Smith is Assembly speaker pro tempore and chairs the powerful Ways and Means Committee but isn't expected to become Assembly speaker in 2013.
Candidates running to complete Leslie's Senate term would be on the ballot in 2012.
A new four-year term would start with the 2014 election, according to the secretary of state's office.
All of Nevada's 42 Assembly and 21 Senate seats were redrawn with new boundaries as part of redistricting, which happens every 10 years as the population changes.
The other seats in play for Senate control include:
• Senate District 18. The new district in northwest Las Vegas leans Republican, 40 percent compared with 38 percent Democrat. Assemblyman Scott Hammond, R-Las Vegas, and Assemblyman Richard McArthur, R-Las Vegas, are both running for the seat. Hammond has been endorsed by the Senate Republican caucus, which is counting on the seat. Denis, the Democratic leader, said his party will put up a candidate in the coming couple of weeks and sees the seat as a good opportunity to win.
• Senate District 5. Democrat Shirley Breeden is retiring. Two Republicans are running for the seat: Steve Kirk, a former Henderson city councilman, and Dr. Annette Teijeiro, a first-time candidate. Kirk has been endorsed by the Senate Republican caucus. The primary winner would face Democrat Joyce Woodhouse, a former senator endorsed by the Senate Democratic Caucus. Democrats have a 2,000-voter registration advantage, but Republicans see the seat as a pickup opportunity.
• Senate District 6. Democrat Allison Copening is retiring. Republican Mark Hutchison may face Democrat Benny Yerushalmi in November. The Democrats have a 2,700 registered voter advantage, but Yerushalmi lost in 2010 to state Sen. Elizabeth Halseth, R-Las Vegas.
In 2008, both Senate districts 5 and 6 leaned Republican, but the Democratic candidates won in part because of the strength of Obama at the top of the ticket.
Contact reporter Laura Myers at lmyers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2919. Follow @lmyerslvrj on Twitter.
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bob_realist: You are exactly right. Get rid of the whole bunch, way to much corruption...
If you want change, Please vote Democrat. This state needs to broaden it's tax base. The mining companies are getting away with a crime. I fully support and will contribute to the Leslie campaign.
Please consider this as you think about our state. Vote for change of direction. Vote Democrat. Thanks for reading this post and be kind to one another.
@ Bob_Realist.. I agree with you 100%
Leslies' BFF is the Progressive Leadership of Nevada outfit...she's a progressive. If you don't believe me check out who was her traveling companion for Obamas inaugural. Do yourselves a favor and google "PLAN" and read their agenda...it's all there...it's her platform.
Bower did zero as US Attorney. Not a single investigation into political corruption, HOA fraud, or any of the crimes against Nevada taxpayers….many crimes that are by the sheer magnitude and the callous egotistical, "above the law" players involved are getting some consideration by the DOJ, FBI, and SEC today.
Sheila Leslie rocks! Sheila can do no wrong in my eyes. If she is on my ballot in any district, she has my vote. Check out this woman's record, and you will see she is one heck of a great legislator. I have every confidence her new district will agree. Keep up the good work, Sheila.
Another choice between HUGE government and GIGANTIC government.
Good Riddance! For years she has protected employees that put in 2 hour day for a six figure salary.
(R) or (D), does it really matter? They don't seem to get much done anyway. Clean house and set term limits to two for all who are chosen. This helps curb corruption and get rid of the vermin we have there now. If it were me, I could not sleep at night knowing I bend the people I represent over the table on a daily basis. How about a kiss next time?