Primary candidates give support to O’Neil

By Timothy Pratt

Thursday, Sept. 5, 2002 | 9:11 a.m.

Democrat Mark Budetich and Republican Barry Bilbray, losing candidates for Nevada's new congressional district in the primary election, announced their support Wednesday for Independent candidate Pete O'Neil in November's general election.

"The fact of the matter is we got two front-runners who are clones ... and are just doing what they're told," Bilbray said.

He was referring to Democrat Dario Herrera and Republican Jon Porter, who are competing for the 3rd Congressional District seat.

"They're both bought out by special interests," Budetich said.

O'Neil said he hopes to pick up more votes thanks to the pair's endorsement, since Budetich drew 31.2 percent of the vote in his loss to Herrera, and Bilbray got nearly 17 percent while losing to Porter.

These results were even more impressive given that both candidates combined spent under $40,000 on their campaigns, compared to the $1.5 million spent by Herrera and Porter.

"You've also got to remember that the district is 15 percent Independent -- three times the national average," O'Neil said. "So I think we have a shot at making it a three-way race, even though I'm the underdog."

Budetich and Bilbray said they supported O'Neil's position on Yucca Mountain. He is in favor of obtaining financial benefits for the state from the project.

Budetich added that he agreed with O'Neil's interest in developing renewable energy.

"Our state could be a leader in this area," he said.