Editorial: Bill would dilute the voters’ say

Monday, March 12, 2001 | 8:30 a.m.

Abill is moving through the Nevada Legislature that could take away the right of the voters to choose who they want to represent them. Senate Bill 268 would prevent elected officials from running for a different office unless they first resign from their current posts. Officials can be exempted from the "resign to run" bill, however, if their terms end within three months of Election Day. Backers of the bill state that they want to end the practice of politicians job-hunting before their terms expire, noting that officials owe it to the public to focus on the duties of the job that they initially were elected to do.

The stated purpose of the bill is well-meaning, but the legislation also has the smell of politics attached to it. A joint sponsor of the bill is Assemblyman David Goldwater, D-Las Vegas. As Sun reporter Adrienne Packer noted in a story about the proposal, Goldwater is a friend of Clark County Commission Chairman Dario Herrera, who likely will run for a new congressional seat in Nevada. The bill would effectively knock out a potential Herrera challenger, Yvonne Atkinson Gates, who has two years left on her term. Herrera, meanwhile, would be exempt since his term would expire just two months after the general election for the congressional seat in 2002.

It's also interesting to note that if this bill had been in effect during the last election, state Sen. Jon Porter wouldn't have been able to run for a House seat in 2000 -- unless he had resigned his office. Porter, once again, is eyeing a run for Congress, but he would be exempt since his term would expire two months after the next general election. In addition, if this law had been in effect in 1988, then-Gov.Richard Bryan would have been barred from running for the U.S. Senate. Bryan did an outstanding job as U.S. senator, which just goes to show how such a proposal could keep an excellent candidate from running for -- and winning -- office.

Whether candidates who leave in mid-term have violated a contract with the voters is a valid issue to raise in a campaign. But in the end, it is the voters who should have the final say as to who would best represent them, not state lawmakers who would shrink the pool of available candidates. This bill reminds us of another folly that has taken away the power of voters: term limits. All that term limits has done is force good people to quit their offices, even though many previously have won elections by landslides. The Legislature should place its faith with the voters and defeat SB268.