Battle for House seat heating up

Greg Tuttle

Saturday, Oct. 7, 2000 | 3:05 a.m.

Touted early as a major battleground between Republicans and Democrats in their campaigns for control of the U.S. House of Representatives, the race between Shelley Berkley and Jon Porter for Nevada's 1st Congressional District has been anything but engaging.

So far.

Porter, a 47-year-old Republican state senator from Boulder City, has led a quiet campaign since the September primary when he won handily against two lesser-known and under-funded fellow party members.

Porter has only aired one television advertisement since early September, although he has bought several radio spots one political observer described as "touchy feely."

"Either Porter thinks he's got a chance with a positive campaign, or he's a nice man," said UNLV political science professor Ted Jelen. "I wonder if he doesn't think he's somehow sneaking up on Berkley."

Berkley, a Democratic incumbent finishing her first term, has been more visible with several television advertisements running in the Las Vegas area. But for the most part, her campaign has been a low-key affair for Southern Nevada voters who have been hearing more about the contest for the U.S. Senate between Republican John Ensign and Democrat Ed Bernstein.

But the relative quiet and politeness between Berkley and Porter could turn into rumbling thunder in the remaining four weeks leading to the Nov. 7 general election.

Storm clouds first appeared on the campaign horizon late last week when state Democrats accused Porter of violating federal election laws by failing to fully disclose campaign contributions and expenditures.

"We have laws for a reason, Senator Porter, and it's about time you start following them," said a press release issued by Nevada Democratic Chair Rory Reid.

Porter's camp responded by saying the accusations are hollow and indicate a crack in the otherwise solid lead Berkley has held in the race.

More dark clouds appear to be gathering and threaten a deluge as Porter's campaign prepares to launch an assault on what it says are the questionable ethics of Berkley, Porter spokesman Josh Griffin said last week.

Porter also is prepared to begin hammering at Berkley's voting record, Griffin said, and is ready with a $1 million ad campaign to begin this week.

"October is going to be a loud month," he said. "It's going to be Pearl Harbor."

The tactical change by Porter comes on the heels of recent polls showing Berkley with a substantial lead in the race. In fact, Berkley has maintained a double-digit advantage throughout the campaign, and she appears to be pulling even farther ahead.

According to a survey released last week by national pollster Doug Schoen for Nevada gaming interests, Berkley leads Porter by a margin of 47 percent to 24 percent.

A similar poll in March gave Berkley a 43 percent to 24 percent lead over Porter.

Porter has countered with his own polls showing the race much closer.

And Berkley has maintained a steady advantage in the fund-raising arena. The latest available reports from the Federal Elections Commission in August show Berkley had raised $1.6 million, while Porter trails with about $855,000.

Going into September, Porter's campaign had spent nearly $600,000, leaving about $283,000 in the bank.

Berkley, who did not face a primary opponent, had spent about $720,000, leaving her a war chest of nearly $1 million.

According to FEC records, Berkley has raised about $426,000 from individual donors in Nevada. She also has raised just over $300,000 from individual donations from other states, and labor organizations have combined to fund her re-election bid with nearly $200,000.

During the same period, Porter has raised a majority of his individual donations from Nevada citizens, about $455,000, according to the FEC. Only $28,000 has come from out-of-state donors as of mid August.

In the war of words, Berkley has so far insulated herself from the attacks on Porter waged by Democratic party officials. Her camp maintains she will forge a positive, issue-orientated campaign.

"We want to keep this campaign about the issues," said Berkley spokeswoman Stacy D'Aquila last week. "We plan to continue as we have, focusing on the issues."

But if the campaign does get muddy, the former state university regent and mother of two is no stranger to the negative side of politics.

During the campaign two years ago between Berkley and Republican Don Chairez, Berkley came under intense fire when a tape recording surfaced of a conversation she had in which she suggested money buys political favors.

And Berkley's former boss, Las Vegas Sands Inc. Chairman Sheldon Adelson joined the fray against Berkley by contributing large sums to Chairez. Berkley, 49, worked at the casino-hotel for Adelson as vice president of government affairs before she was fired after a falling out with the powerful gaming executive.

Berkley apologized for the taped remark, but that didn't stop Chairez, a former Clark County District Court judge, from using the issue to attack her credibility.

Berkley, however, fired the first shot early in the race when she accused Chairez of failing to pay taxes on four occasions in the 1980s. Chairez said the unpaid taxes were tied to a struggling business and were eventually paid.

Regardless, Berkley went on to win the election in the Democratic dominated district by garnering 49 percent of the votes to Chairez' 46 percent.

It was a "very difficult election," Berkley said recently.

This time, Berkley said she prefers to focus the campaign on her efforts in Washington, D.C., and the issues she says separate the two candidates.

Those issues include a national health care plan for prescription drugs Berkley said should be tied to the current Medicare system. It is one of only a few issues the candidates can point to as a defining difference between them.

Berkley said it makes sense to build a prescription drug plan around the current Medicare system, and she is "philosophically opposed" to insurance subsidies.

"As long as we have a system in place and it is a part of quality health care in this country, that is where it needs to be," she said.

Porter supports a recent plan adopted by Nevada state officials that will supplement private insurance companies for senior citizen prescription medications. Porter blasts Berkley for opposing the state plan.

"What she is doing is using our seniors in Nevada for political gain in Washington, D.C., to pass a partisan program," he said.

Porter also has criticized Berkley for a vote she cast last year that approved about $325 million for continued studies at the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump. Despite the bill's inclusion of $40 million for other state projects, including $29 million for flood control measures, Porter said he would have opposed the bill.

"You can't stop Yucca Mountain by funding it," he said.

Berkley defends her vote by pointing out that all of Nevada's delegates in Congress supported the spending bill, despite a unanimous stand against the nuclear waste project.

"I think it's an issue they are creating out of desperation," she said.

Both candidates said they support protecting Social Security and increased funding for military, veterans and education. And both point to years of public service as qualities voters should consider at the polling booth.

Porter, an insurance agent, has served in the state Senate since 1994. He was on the Boulder City Council for a decade before serving in the state Legislature, including a four-year stint as mayor.

Berkley served one term in the state Assembly in the early 1980s, then was elected the Democratic Party National Committeewoman in 1988.

Helen Foley, a Democrat and former state legislator who now works as a lobbyist in Las Vegas, predicted a close race between Porter and Berkley. She described Porter as a fair politician who has a record of success at the state level.

"He's got a tough race," Foley said of Porter. "I think both candidates are very good choices for Nevada."

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