Education panel member plans to challenge Neal

Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2004 | 9:50 a.m.

SUN CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY -- State Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, who has served 32 years in the Senate, is going to have a challenger in the upcoming election.

Theresa "Terri" Malone, a member of the state Board of Education, announced Tuesday she would run for the seat in Senate District 4, located in parts of Las Vegas and North Las Vegas.

Malone, a Democrat, was elected to the Board of Education in 2000 for a term that ends in January 2005. She is married to former state Sen. Mike Malone, who served one term in the Senate as a Republican.

Malone, in her announcement, said she would support legislation to diversify the economy, work on strong anti-crime laws and promote fiscal responsibility in the state.

For seven years Malone, 53, has been employed at the Community College of Southern Nevada as a computer lab instructor. She also manages rental property, which she owns with her husband.

Neal said he will probably run for a ninth term. He and Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, are tied for the longest service in the State Senate.

He said he did not know why Malone was running, but he added, "The field is open. Anybody can run."

He said his district was expanded under reapportionment to include the neighborhood that Malone lives in.

There are 22,186 Democrats, 10,336 Republicans and 5,195 independents registered in the district.