GOP pushes hard for Assembly seats

Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2000 | 9:03 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Republicans are in the minority 26-14 in the Nevada Assembly but they are intent on narrowing that margin or, with some luck, winning the majority in the 2001 Legislature.

And their strategy is clear on the Clark County election ballot. Not one of the six Assembly GOP incumbents has drawn opposition in the primary election. Therefore, Republicans can save money and concentrate their resources.

That contrasts with the Democrats, a more freewheeling bunch. There are 19 incumbents, and seven have opposition from fellow party members.

According to questionnaires filled out by candidates, the main issue is improving education. But nobody is talking about increasing taxes to gain more funds for public schools and University and Community College System of Nevada.

Candidates are also concerned about the cost of prescription drugs for senior citizens. And all want to make state government more efficient but they are short on suggestions on what to trim.

Here is a breakdown of the primary election races in the Assembly in Clark County.

District 1

Democrat incumbent Tom Collins of North Las Vegas is unopposed in his party primary.

The Republican contest pits Ed Gobel, a disabled Vietnam veteran, against Christ Grant.

Gobel, 50, proposes to provide freedom from state government in choosing health care coverage and working to solve the high cost of prescription drug coverage. "We must stop the mindset of money solving all education problems," says Gobel.

Grant, 44, is campaigning on a platform of insurance reform and pledges to "represent the people."

District 6

Assemblyman Wendell P. Williams, elected in 1986, drew opposition from fellow Democrat Harvey Munford, a high school government teacher, in the primary election. Since no one else filed, the winner of the Sept. 5 primary will automatically be elected.

Williams, a former teacher, works in the business-development program for the city of Las Vegas and has been chairman of the Assembly Education Committee for several sessions.

Munford, 60, coached basketball at Bonanza High School for seven years and coached at Cashman Junior High School for two years. In his playing days, he was drafted by both the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Rams.

District 7

Incumbent Democrat Morse Arberry Jr. is challenged by his longtime foe Marion Bennett.

Arberry, 47, has been a member of the Assembly since 1985 and has headed the powerful Ways and Means Committee that helps write the state budget.

Bennett, 64, served in the Assembly from 1972 to 1982 and has run against Arberry at least four times in the primary election. Bennett calls for state support for summer school for low achievers and state support for drug rehabilitation programs and job opportunities for youth.

The Republican contest is between Mabel Lucier and Chester Richardson.

District 8

Incumbent Democrat Barbara Buckley, assistant majority leader in the 1999 Assembly, is opposed by Maureen Hart in the primary election.

Buckley, who is seeking a fourth term, said she wants to bring reforms to the system of neglected and abandoned children and also wants to follow up on the new senior citizens prescription drug program.

Hart did not respond to a questionnaire. The winner will face Republican Kevin Child in the general election.

District 11

Two Republicans are competing for the right to take on incumbent Democrat Douglas Bache who has served since the 1991 session.

Todd C. Poulton, a UNLV student, is opposed by Michael Wisner, a Teamster.

Poulton, 31, wants a law for mandatory sentencing and also wants "to protect the U.S. constitutional rights of Nevadans."

Wisner, 53, would toughen school safety laws and look for ways to speed up construction of transportation projects. "We must find ways to get more bang for the buck and still attract a wide variety of businesses to Nevada."

District 12

Incumbent Democrat Genie Ohrenschall, who has served since 1994, drew opposition in the primary election from Ed Flores, a UNLV political science major.

Ohrenschall says she wants to fight against unfair rent increases for mobile home residents, and protect the desert from garbage dumping. She also wants to protect the "older neighborhoods, along with providing equal community services and appropriate long-term planning for newer neighborhoods."

Flores wants to toughen the law on notifying neighborhoods when sexual predators move in. At present, the community is notified only based on the level of risk the individual will repeat. Flores wants notification to go out on every person, "regardless of the level of recidivism."

The winner faces Republican Geny Del Rosario and Citizens First Party candidate Wanda McClenaghan.

District 14

Incumbent Democrat Ellen Koivisto, seeking a third term, is challenged by David Brown, who describes himself as a small-business man and consumer advocate.

Koivisto heads the interim committee looking at health care problems in Nevada. An employee at UNLV, Koivisto sees the major issues in 2001 as the availability of quality affordable health care, long-term care, rural health care, pharmaceutical costs and construction defect legislation.

Brown complains that the computer registration system of the state Department of Motor Vehicles and Public Safety has been a "total failure" and he would bring "government accountability to the citizens." Brown also wants "effective government that serves but does not enslave the people."

The winner will face Republican Mike Davis in the general election.

District 15

Republican Jack Close starts his comeback effort to return to the Assembly. He faces Lila Halperin in the primary election.

Close served two terms in the Assembly before he was defeated in the last election in an attempt for the Senate. If elected, Close said he would strive for merit-based salary increases for schoolteachers. And he wants to see the money for education going to the classroom and not to administration. "If I am returned to the Legislature, I would continue to work to make government work more efficiently and economically," Close said.

Halperin did not return the questionnaire.

Incumbent Democrat Kathy McClain, seeking a second term, is opposed in the primary by Ronald A. Tanner Jr., who wants to improve education, promote family initiatives, reduce government, lower taxes and pass campaign finance reform.

District 16

Democrat incumbent Kelly Thomas decided against seeking re-election and two Democrats and two Republicans have jumped into the race.

On the Democratic side, John Oceguera is competing with Wayne Weiswasser in the primary election.

Oceguera wants to "improve education, provide assistance for the elderly, oppose unnecessary taxation and improve our quality of life."

Weiswasser did not list any campaign platform on his questionnaire.

Republicans are Jack McClary and Leonard Root, who did not respond to a questionnaire.

McClary, who owns a financial and management consulting business, says he has been involved in community affairs such as the Las Vegas Parks and Recreation Commission, the Clark County Comprehensive Planning Steering Committee and the North Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce.

District 17

Democrat incumbent Bob Price, first elected in 1974, is unopposed in the party primary election. Republican candidates are Anthony "Bob" Campagna and Terry Holtz.

Campagna, who ran unsuccessfully for the North Las Vegas City Council two years ago, wants to lower car insurance rates for new responsible drivers and to ensure "equal care for both HMOs and small-business employees."

Holtz, a businesswoman who owns a 7-Eleven store and a custom picture framing store, says she will work to ensure responsible government spending, "fix education, private and public" and continue to support tough laws on crime.

District 20

Incumbent Republican Kathy Von Tobel is unopposed in her party primary. Democrats Bradley Smith and Thomas Welsh are seeking their party's nomination.

Welsh said he was concerned about the quality of education. And he supports more assistance for veterans in need. He also wants to protect senior citizens.

Smith did not respond to the questionnaire.

District 21

Incumbent Republican Sandra Tiffany, seeking a fifth term, did not draw any opposition in her party primary election. Democrats Larry Bettis and Rod Kirk are seeking their party nomination.

Bettis has been a deputy city attorney for Las Vegas since 1990 and before that was elected to four terms as district attorney in Mineral County. His priorities are education, police-fire protection, senior citizen health care and preservation and protection of traditional family values.

Kirk did not respond to the questionnaire.

District 28

Incumbent Democrat Vonne Chowning is seeking her sixth term, and she is opposed in the primary election by Judi Lynn, in a rematch of the 1998 election.

Chowning says help is needed to pay for high prescription drug costs. She says class size reduction programs in the schools should be continued and remediation must be strengthened to help students who are not meeting the new academic standards. She said growth measures are needed to assure air quality and water availability in Southern Nevada.

Lynn did not respond to the questionnaire.

The winner will meet Libertarian James Dan in the general election.

District 41

Incumbent Democrat David Parks is unopposed in the primary election.

Republicans seeking their party nomination are Phillip Dane and John Richie.

Richie has been a business owner for 28 years and currently operates a welding company. He favors offering more charter schools for vocational training, opposes any tax increases, supports the traditional marriage concept of a man and a woman and opposes fluoride treatment in the drinking water of Clark County.

Dane, a businessman-union negotiator, supports a state lottery, opposes same-sex marriages and is against the initiative petition by Sen. Joe Neal to increase the tax on casinos.

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