After a brush with bankruptcy in 2013, North Las Vegas has morphed into a fast-growing city that is attracting industrial development, new educational opportunities as well as housing construction. 

North Las Vegas is a Southern Nevada success story — so who are the prospective new leaders looking to sit at the helm of this city? 

The conversation around the mayoral election has been dominated by two top contenders: Councilmember Scott Black and Assm. Daniele Monroe-Moreno (D-North Las Vegas). After primary election night, Monroe-Moreno had garnered 47 percent of the vote, while Black received 42. 

Both are longtime North Las Vegas residents with more than a decade of experience as elected officials. Prior to becoming an assemblymember, Monroe-Moreno worked in law enforcement as a correctional officer, while Black owned a small local marketing firm and is a former UPS worker. 

The mayoral election has not been without bumps for the candidates. Black, as well as the city of North Las Vegas, were the subject of a lawsuit earlier this year that alleged he was not eligible to run due to term limits, despite the current mayor, Pamela Goynes-Brown, and other local elected officials also exceeding the limits. 

The man who filed the lawsuit, Karín Rodriguez, a legal case manager, received $1,250 from Monroe-Moreno's campaign, and Monroe-Moreno had also donated $3,500 to the legal firm representing him in the suit. A judge later ruled that Black was allowed to stay in the running. 

Among others, Black has been endorsed by Goynes-Brown, several North Las Vegas law enforcement unions, Teamsters 631 as well as the Vegas Chamber. Monroe-Moreno has been endorsed by former Vice President Kamala Harris, Nevada Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Attorney General Aaron Ford and more. 

Comparing the candidates' views

The Nevada Independent is taking a new approach to inform readers about the candidates running for state Legislature: A survey asking candidates to rate their agreement with a series of policy statements, with the option to elaborate on their answers. They were asked to rate their agreement on a scale of strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, or strongly disagree.

Use the tool below to see how the North Las Vegas candidates responded. (Note: Scott Black declined to respond to the survey.)

City Council races 

After the primaries, the Ward 3 spot, left vacant by Black's departure, was won by North Las Vegas Planning Commissioner Ida Zeiler, who received more than 50 percent of the vote and therefore won automatically. 

Two candidates are running for the Ward 1 seat, currently held by departing Councilmember Isaac Barron, who is running for state Senate. Esmeralda Villeda, a real estate agent who also sits on the planning commission is vying for the seat against Sherry Strothers, a veteran and a real estate agent. After a tight primary race ended with them just 200 votes apart, the two first-time candidates both went on to the general with Villeda receiving 39.7 percent of the vote and Strothers 34.9 percent. 

Originally from Chicago, Strothers is a 30-year Navy veteran who spent much of her career in San Diego and now works in real estate. She said the Emerge Program, a political training group for Democratic women in Nevada, emboldened her to run for public office. 

"When I was in the Navy, I had an executive officer tell me once that I could only control what's within the scope of my umbrella," Strothers told The Nevada Independent. "But if I get an opportunity, I can make some very positive changes here in the city of North Las Vegas." 

Strothers said she is primarily concerned with affordable housing and bringing more opportunities, like retailers and tourist attractions, to the city. As a real estate agent, she said she encountered several people who were struggling in Clark County, such as a young woman that had become homeless due to housing costs and was living in her car with her children. She said Clark County had poor protections for renters. 

"It just broke my damn heart," Strother said, adding that she tried helping the woman through public aid. "I was trying to find some safety net. … I lost track of her, but that stuck with me." 

Strothers said she's been pleased by the growth she's seen in North Las Vegas but was disappointed by the planning commission's vote to block an affordable housing development for veterans called Tunnels for Towers. She noted that Villeda had approved of the project but called for it to be in a better location. It is now slated to be built in Las Vegas. 

Strothers has been endorsed by SEUI Local 1107, Teamsters Nevada, Veterans in Politics International, Women's Democratic Club Clark County, Nevada NOW PAC and the Nevada Black Legislative Caucus, among others. 

Villeda, a lifelong North Las Vegas resident, said she's running for the city council seat because she wants to continue the positive momentum the city has started in its economic growth after struggling in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. She said it was important for candidates to be natives to the city. 

"I'm already boots on the ground, I'm already doing the work and I'm ready to go day one," Villeda said, pointing to her four years of experience on the planning commission. 

Her biggest concern for the city is public safety, the "backbone of any thriving city." Villeda said police and firefighters need to be properly funded in order to protect constituents and small businesses. 

She's also concerned with keeping rents low through promoting more housing construction, as well as providing resources to maintain established neighborhoods.  

Villeda has been endorsed by several sitting North Las Vegas politicians, including Goynes-Brown, Barron, Black and Councilmember Ruth Garcia-Anderson. She's also been endorsed by Hispanics in Politics, Southern Nevada Building Trades Union and more. 

Comparing the candidates' views

The Nevada Independent is taking a new approach to inform readers about the candidates running for state Legislature: A survey asking candidates to rate their agreement with a series of policy statements, with the option to elaborate on their answers. They were asked to rate their agreement on a scale of strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, or strongly disagree.

Use the tool below to see how the North Las Vegas candidates responded. (Note: Esmerelda Villeda declined to respond to the survey.)