Friday, Sept. 5, 2003 | 9:34 a.m.
Democratic Assemblyman David Goldwater will not run against Rep. Jon Porter next year. Goldwater said he can be more effective as a veteran in Carson City than as a freshman in D.C., where his party is in the minority in the House.
"It is simply not the right time for me, and it's too much of an uphill battle," Goldwater said Thursday.
Goldwater informed Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and state party leaders of his decision.
"As a senior member of the Nevada state Assembly, I believe I can do more for Nevadans serving where I am," Goldwater said in a press release issued today.
Goldwater, 33, is chairman of the Assembly Commerce and Labor Committee and has served as an assemblyman from Las Vegas since 1995.
Part of Goldwater's decision is related to the 3rd Congressional District itself.
While the district has about as many registered Democrats as registered Republicans, most of the district's "inveterate" voters are registered Republicans.
Inveterate voters are those who have voted in the past two general elections, and are likely to vote in the next.
Reid has also been talking with other potential candidates to run against Porter, a first-term Republican and former state senator.
Goldwater was down on the list below current and former television news anchorwomen Paula Francis and Deborah Levy, respectively. Now the senator is talking with Assemblyman John Oceguera, D-North Las Vegas, about the potential for him to run against Porter.
Oceguera has not yet made up his mind.
Both Goldwater and Oceguera said when Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., decided not to run against Reid for the Senate next year, their potential bids for Congress were hurt.
If Reid had a major race with Gibbons, they argued, the Democratic get-out-the-vote machine would have trickled down support to their candidacy.
Arm-twisting fails
Assemblyman Jason Geddes, R-Reno, voted for taxes and counts environmental concerns among his top issues.
But despite a recent courtship by Reid and Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, Geddes isn't leaning too far to the left.
Geddes flew to Las Vegas on Aug. 30 to meet with Reid in Searchlight. He said the meeting was about the proposed geothermal campus for the University of Nevada, Reno, where Geddes is environmental affairs manager.
But a funny thing happened on the way to renewable energy. Geddes got a pitch to renew his political party registration as a Democrat from the man who got Vermont Sen. Jim Jeffords to switch from Republican to Independent. The Jeffords switch gave Demcorats control of the U.S. Senate for a time and put Reid second in command.
"He may have been courting, but I'm married," Geddes joked. "I just don't see any reason to switch parties. I'm a Republican. I've been a Republican my whole life."
The deadline to switch parties was Aug. 31 -- the day after the meeting.
Perkins and Reid would not comment about the courtship.
Geddes said he expects he will draw opponents in the Republican primary and in the general election. Democrats want to take back Geddes' District 23 in Reno, and conservative Republicans want to oust Geddes and the other members of the GOP who voted for the tax increase package.
Chamber readies role
The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce's government affairs committee will have its first post-legislative meeting Monday to start considering which candidates the chamber will support next year.
"We're going to be trying to make a difference in a few races and will be picking a few people to focus on," chamber President and CEO Kara Kelley said.
In 2002, the chamber backed Republican Barbara Cegavske in her successful bid for the state Senate, but it largely stayed out of most races.
Kelley said no candidates have emerged for the chamber to back although she said the organization has already received numerous requests from candidates to fund campaigns and issue endorsements.
The chamber could play a role in the aftermath of the tax battle in the last session. The chamber opposed the bulk of the tax plans that were debated during the session.
Raggio unfazed
Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, hasn't decided whether to seek re-election next year, but some of his caucus members reportedly don't want him to return as leader.
A raucus caucus meeting recently ensued with reports of bitterness between conservatives who voted against taxes and moderates who backed Raggio in voting for $836 million in new taxes over two years.
"I just let things shake out," Raggio said. "I don't lose sleep over it."
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