Nevada Republican Chairman Mark Amodei enters CD2 special election

By Anjeanette Damon

Monday, May 9, 2011 | 7:27 a.m.

Nevada Republican Party Chairman Mark Amodei became fourth Republican to enter the special election contest for the 2nd Congressional District today, setting up a possible path to victory for wildcard Sharron Angle or a Democrat.

Amodei, a former state senator who briefly ran for U.S. Senate last year, has been exploring the congressional race for several weeks. He confirmed to the Sun this morning that he will enter the race. He is set to make a formal announcement at a press conference in Carson City later this morning.

Amodei is the fourth major Republican to enter the free-for-all Sept. 13 special election. Under rules approved by Secretary of State Ross Miller, any qualified candidate can run on the ballot, which will likely pit multiple Republicans against multiple Democrats and a cadre of minor party candidates.

Angle, who is recuperating from a bruising defeat from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, was the first to announce. She has fallen out of favor with the Republican Party since losing that race. But she still has a small but devoted base of support that could see her through a crowded Republican field in the special election. In addition to Amodei, the other Republicans in the race, who could cannibalize votes from each other, are state Sen. Greg Brower and former U.S.S. Cole Commander Kirk Lippold.

Democrats also see a path to victory if the Republicans crowd the race with several viable candidates. Democrats have never won the heavily Republican district.

State Treasurer Kate Marshall is in the race and former regents Nancy Price and Jill Derby, who have both run and lost in the district, have said they will run also. If Democrats settle on a single candidate, that person could cobble enough votes together to win the seat away from Republicans.