Money, name called election keys

Judey Odierna

Monday, Feb. 10, 2003 | 11:17 a.m.

With the close of filing Friday, the Las Vegas ballot was set and experts predict the outcome of the upcoming election will hinge on name recognition and money.

"There are no more political campaigns, only fund-raising campaigns," veteran political strategist Don Williams said. "As Benny Binion used to say, 'I believe in the golden rule -- and the man with the gold makes the rules.'

"He who raises a lot of money wins."

Two incumbents are lucky enough to not have to worry about that. No one filed to run against Department 3 Municipal Judge George Assad or Department 4 Municipal Judge Bert Brown, so the two judges are automatically re-elected. Brown will serve a six-year term and Assad will serve a two-year term. The annual salary for the job is $113,578 a year.

A third incumbent in Municipal Court wasn't as fortunate. Toy R. Gregory will face challengers Denise McCurry and Mathew Paul Harter for the Department 1 bench. McCurry is an alternate judge, while . Harter ran unsuccessfully for Family Court in November.

Michael Bowers, a professor of political science at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said that although Gregory's race will be competitive, chances are he will come out on top.

"What we find in judicial races is 95 percent of the time the incumbent wins," Bowers said. "Voters know the name, they've seen it on the ballot and elsewhere before, and chances are they have been in the judge's courtroom."

For the seven candidates in the crowded race for the vacant Municipal Judge Department 6 seat, however, it's anyone's race.

"It comes down to money and name recognition when you have a field that big," Bowers said. "Voters have a tough time distinguishing between candidates, but you can buy recognition if you have enough money."

Bowers said Chief Deputy District Attorney Abbi Silver may have the best shot in the race. Silver ran unsuccessfully for district attorney last year.

The other candidates are Bill Gonzalez, a Clark County public defender; Bill Henderson, a lawyer who has run unsuccessfully for several judicial seats, most recently in November for Family Court judge; lawyer Stefany Miley; Gary A. Pulliam, an alternate municipal lieutenant judge; L. Jordan Weinsteen, also an alternate Municipal Court judge; and Lillian Davis.

Political strategist Kent Oram, who is working with Mayor Oscar Goodman and Councilman Michael McDonald on their races, is predicting a 12 percent to 15 percent voter turnout for the primaries on April 8.

All candidates with opponents are on the ballot for the primaries. If candidates receive more than 50 percent of votes in the non-partisan primary election, then they are considered elected and do not have to run in the June 3 general election.

Ward 5 Councilman Lawrence Weekly and Ward 3 Councilman Gary Reese could be forced into the general election because they each face two challengers, political analysts said.

Weekly will face off against Gene Collins and Jefferson Lee. Lee has lived in Las Vegas for almost three years and is a supervisor at Global Services, which is owned by Delta Airlines. He has never run for office in Las Vegas.

Collins serves with Weekly on the county's Economic Opportunity Board, which represents low-income communities in Clark County, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas. Collins is a former assemblyman.

"He may draw enough of a grass-roots campaign to force Weekly into a general election," Oram said.

Reese's challengers are Fernando Romero, a civic activist and member of the Latin Chamber of Commerce, and Keith Vanderwyst, who has lived in Las Vegas for only three months.

Because Ward 3 has a strong Hispanic population, the race could come down to who gets the Hispanic vote. Reese faced a tough election in 1999 against challenger Nevada Stupak, despite Stupak's relative lack of campaign funding. Reese defeated Stupak by just 139 votes. Reese spent $532,784 to Stupak's $73,673.

Reese has raised a little more than $100,000 so far for this election, according to his campaign finance reports.

Reese has also secured former County Commissioner Dario Herrera as a paid campaign advisor. Herrera said he's there to help get the word out about Reese's accomplishments.

"I'm here to tell everyone, including members of the Hispanic community, what a great job Reese has done," Herrera said.

Herrera acknowledged he had met with Romero last year but never promised to back him.

"I accepted a meeting in which he asked me my opinion on his candidacy for Ward 3. Herrera said. "I responded by telling him that, at the time, I was solely focused on my own election efforts."

Political analysts say it will be important to watch and see if the Hispanic community comes out to support Romero or Reese.

"This is really a mandate of how much influence the Hispanic community has on Southern Nevada," Williams said. "If they don't get out the vote with this guy, then it's the last time anyone will make a big deal about getting the Hispanic vote."

Goodman and McDonald are expected to have an easier time getting re-elected.

McDonald will run against civic activist Peter "Chris" Christoff, who ran unsuccessfully against McDonald in 1999; Paul C. Chomintra, who has lived in Las Vegas for about a year and once ran for congress in Thailand; and Janet Moncrief, a nurse.

Goodman also has several challengers. One is city government watchdog Tom McGowan, who ran unsuccessfully against Goodman in 1999 and raised no campaign contributions during that race. Goodman has already raised more than $750,000 for his re-election campaign.

The other opponents are Joe Falco, a car salesman who has lived in Vegas for more than five years; Edward R. Schmitt, a plumbing contractor who has no political experience; Allan "Big Al" Smith, who also has no previous political experience and says he is self-employed; and C. "Mazunga" Poliak, a sanitation employee who has run unsuccessfully for governor and for County Commission.

"There is no doubt that Goodman will win re-election," Bowers predicted. "This race will make (Gov. Kenny Guinn's landslide win) look like a close one."