Democrats will control the Washoe County Commission for what appears to be the first time ever, part of a historic election night that also saw Democrats sweep races in Reno.
Across the board, Northern Nevada gave way to the blue tsunami that engulfed the U.S. and Nevada, even in ruby red districts and despite Democratic candidates often raising much less money than their Republican opponents.
But the political climate didn't just carry Democrats, it also hurt incumbents. In key races in Sparks, the officeholders are in trouble of losing their seats, though those races were still too close to call as of Wednesday evening.
The results reflect a realignment in Northern Nevada's political scene, also shown through Teresa Benitez-Thompson's (D-NV) victory in Nevada's 2nd Congressional District. It's the first time ever the district has gone blue.
Read below for our main takeaways.
Democrats led in all three Washoe County Commission races, putting the party on track for a 4-1 majority when new commissioners are sworn in this January, though one of the races remains too close to call.
The county says it does not believe Democrats have ever controlled the commission.
Commission Chair Alexis Hill, a Democrat who lost the June primary for governor, keeps her District 1 seat through 2028, and Clara Andriola of District 4 will be the board's lone Republican.
Both seats that flipped were held by Republicans, and both lean Republican by registration. In District 2, where registered Republicans outnumbered Democrats by nearly 10 percentage points as of September, former Reno police officer Marie Rodriguez holds a narrow lead over Republican Jon Killoran in a race that remains too close to call.
Not counting loans, Rodriguez raised a little over $9,000 through Sept. 30. Killoran raised nearly $100,000 and spent almost $121,000, most of it before July, when he ousted Commissioner Mike Clark in the Republican primary. Rodriguez did not respond to a request for comment.
District 5, which covers about 89 percent of the county's land, has been held by Republicans for at least two decades, and registered Republicans outnumbered Democrats there by about 5 percentage points. Former Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council member Brian Wadsworth defeated Republican Rob Pierce, who had raised almost $147,500 this year, more than any other commission candidate and about five times Wadsworth's approximately $27,000.
"I think it shows that you don't need to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to run a successful campaign," Wadsworth said in an interview Wednesday. "It doesn't take a ton of money to get out there and get in your car and drive to the communities, talk to the community members."
Wadsworth said some rural voters were worried he would focus only on the tribe if elected. He ended up finding common ground with many over septic tanks and well system issues, power outages and growth concerns.
"When I was out there talking to people in the rural communities, I think that we realized that we have a lot more in common than we may have differences," he said.
Incumbent Democratic Commissioner Mariluz Garcia also cruised to a second term in District 3 over Republican Troy Regas.
"I think what happened last night, I mean, historic on so many measures, but it was a cry from the public saying, 'Enough is enough, and we're ready for a change,'" Garcia said in an interview Wednesday evening.
Even with a Democratic majority, Garcia says she hopes the board will stay focused on largely nonpartisan county work, such as mental health, senior services and infrastructure.
"My hope is that things don't get political, that we just continue to focus on the good work that we need to do, to deliver those essential services," she said.
The new board will also be without the commission's two most prominent election skeptics. Jeanne Herman, who has called for hand-counting paper ballots, and Clark consistently voted against certifying election results, including in July 2024, when the commission voted 3-2 against certifying a primary recount before reversing course a week later. Herman is term-limited, and Clark lost his seat to Killoran in the June primary.
Rodriguez, Garcia and Wadsworth all told The Nevada Independent before the election that they would certify results regardless of the outcome.
There were two open seats on the Reno City Council — and the registered Democrats cruised to victory.
Although the positions are nonpartisan, the races for mayor and Reno City Council Ward 2 each featured a registered Democrat and Republican. Neither race was close.
Former Nevada treasurer and Lt. Gov. Kate Marshall and UNR employee Matt Johnson cruised to victory in their races for mayor and Ward 2. This came despite both candidates raising much less money than their opponents in the final fundraising period before Election Day.
Asked about how much the national environment helped her, Marshall said Wednesday that people in Reno and across the country have made clear that they want the "government to invest in them."
"What is special about Reno is starting to slip away," Marshall said. "People felt like the council has not been responsive."
Meanwhile, Johnson said he thinks he "benefited to some extent" from the Democratic enthusiasm, but he also thinks the race was largely local in nature, with a focus on residents' angst over the city council's relationship with developers. His opponent, Summer Pellett, is the co-founder of a local construction company who received a lot of money from the development and construction industries.
"There's just been a lack of trust in the city council and the mayor lately," he said. "People felt perhaps that there was too much monetary influence on her side."
Data centers were a common theme in both races, with Marshall and Johnson opposing new data center development within city limits.
Rashonda Stubblefield, a 40-year-old owner of a marketing small business, had never voted in a midterm election before. But she did so this year because of data centers and the open race for mayor.
"I'm not an AI or data center fan … especially on public land," she said at Damonte Ranch High School on Tuesday. "I love Nevada and it's beautiful, and I don't think [data centers] should be taking up our resources. Put them somewhere else."
The third Reno race on the ballot was between two Democrats: Ward 4 Council Member Meghan Ebert and taqueria owner Eddie Gomez. Neither candidate provided comment Wednesday.
The race was too close to call as of Wednesday evening, but Gomez' chance of winning could speak to voters' wariness of incumbents, which was also seen in Sparks.
Sparks Mayor Ed Lawson and City Councilmember Dian VanderWell, both in office since 2020, entered the home stretch of campaign season with healthy fundraising leads over their opponents.
As of Wednesday evening, Lawson's race was too close to call, while VanderWell conceded her contest, saying in a statement that, "I am proud of the accomplishments I made and the policies I helped direct."
Wendi Rawson, a winery owner and registered Republican, is locked in a tight race against Lawson, also a registered Republican, despite raising almost six times less money through the first nine months of this year. The Washoe County Republican Party endorsed Rawson.
Lawson's campaign said Wednesday afternoon he will provide comments once more results are known. Rawson did not respond to a request for comment.
Jamie O'Connell, a registered Democrat who works at a medical billing company, only raised about $1,400 through the first nine months of this year. But she is leading VanderWell, who brought in almost $74,000 during that same period.
O'Connell, a lifelong Sparks resident, ran on residents' frustrations with the pace of growth and said the city should review its contracts and spending before looking for new revenue.
VanderWell, who was appointed to the seat in 2020 and won a full term in 2022 by fewer than 200 votes, campaigned on her experience on city and county planning commissions.
O'Connell did not respond to a request for comment.
