Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2005 | 11:16 a.m.
Ward 1 Results
Lois Tarkanian: 2,869 votes; 41.6 percent
Janet Moncrief: 2,059 votes; 29.8 percent
Vicki Quinn: 1,972; 28.6 percent
Lois Tarkanian was returned to elected office on Tuesday, as voters in Las Vegas' Ward 1 chose the former Clark County School Board member to replace incumbent Janet Moncrief on the City Council.
Moncrief was elected to the council in an overwhelming victory less than two years ago, but since then has been dogged by accusations of ineffectiveness and criminal charges for allegedly filing false campaign finance reports.
In the end, Moncrief and others said the indictment was too much to overcome, and Tarkanian's experience in elected office as well as her name recognition propelled her to victory.
Tarkanian won with about 40 percent of the vote, while Moncrief and Vicki Quinn received just under 30 percent each.
"I'm going to try very hard to be as effective as I possibly can be," Tarkanian said.
"I've dealt with bureaucracies long enough to know it's not done when staff says it's done; you go back and you check," Tarkanian said when talking about how she would deal with complaints and requests from her new constituents. "I'll be more accountable and I'll hold city staff more accountable."
Tarkanian said she plans to form citizen action committees, which would meet to discuss problems within the ward and help keep Tarkanian in tune with the concerns of her constituents.
Moncrief turned to a small group of her supporters gathered at Fellini's restaurant after hearing the results of the early voting and said the race was over.
"I did a lot of things for a lot of people, and I did one huge thing, I took someone out of office the people wanted out of office," Moncrief said, referring to former Councilman Michael McDonald, who she defeated in June 2003.
"But it was name recognition for Lois Tarkanian and the word 'indictment' scares people," Moncrief said, explaining the outcome.
Tarkanian was on the School Board from 1989 to 2000, when she lost a close race for County Commission. Her husband is well-known former UNLV basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian.
After the final vote totals were posted, a tearful Moncrief walked from her election-night party at Fellini's to Tarkanian's victory party at The Tap House next door and congratulated Tarkanian. Moncrief also asked Tarkanian to consider keeping her three-person staff.
"Just like a great ball player who lost a game ... she was crying but in control. I said to her that she's done some good things and she should be proud of those," Tarkanian said, adding that she will consider keeping Moncrief's staff.
Quinn ran a close third to Moncrief in what Quinn said was her first and last run for public office.
"Ward 1 won tonight with Lois," Quinn said. "She's going to take care of the ward."
Quinn said she will return to her activism for the handicapped and reform in the juvenile justice system.
According to the complete but unofficial results from the Clark County Election Department, Tarkanian received 2,869 votes, or 41.6 percent; Moncrief received 2,059 votes, or 29.8 percent; and Quinn received 1,972 votes, or 28.6 percent. Also, 6,902 voters cast ballots, which is almost 21.3 percent of the total 32,457 registered voters in Ward 1.
Moncrief said she was surprised by the outcome because polling she had done showed her in a tight race with Tarkanian.
Moncrief said that if she had more money to wage her campaign the results might have been different. According to the most recent campaign finance reports, Moncrief raised $12,000, compared with Tarkanian's $86,850, which included $50,000 she loaned herself, and Quinn's $121,725.
Moncrief said she will return to nursing, a career she's been doing part-time, now that she's off the council. She said she does not know if she will run for elected office again.
A group of residents petitioned to force the recall election. Leaders on the group claimed Moncrief was ineffective, citing her failure to stop a proposed Social Security office building, and also were upset by the indictment.
"I think they're wrongly informed on this indictment," Moncrief said about the voters. "I did nothing wrong and it'll be proven."
But the issue weighed on some voters.
Gerald Norman, 63, who works part-time as a poker dealer, said he voted for Quinn because she wasn't a politician and he wants a change in City Hall.
Norman said Moncrief's indictment kept him from voting for the incumbent because he thinks that whatever the truth is, "there's got to be something" to the criminal charges.
For Blake Fawcett, a 51-year-old taxi driver, the indictment apparently had the opposite effect.
"I would normally not even vote for Janet Moncrief but I think she was set up from the very beginning," Fawcett said. "They should let the lady have her chance, at least until the next general election."
With the victory on Tuesday, Tarkanian will serve the remainder of Moncrief's term, which expires in 2007. Tarkanian said she plans to run for re-election then.
Tarkanian said she thinks voters grew accustomed to a high level of responsiveness from their councilman while McDonald was in office, and found Moncrief lacking.
McDonald had weathered ethical challenges and was connected to evolving scandals when he lost to Moncrief, but both Tarkanian and Quinn have said McDonald was a very effective councilman.
"He did represent this ward very well ... He met the needs of the regular families," Tarkanian said.
But because of the past ethical or legal problems that faced the recent Ward 1 council members, Tarkanian said she will "bend over backwards" to avoid doing something that would give even the appearance of impropriety.
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