Connecting the Dots: Nevada Senate candidates report big contributions from PACs, out-of-state donors

Campaign contributions large and small alike flowed into the war chests for candidates in Nevada’s hotly contested 2018 U.S. Senate race over the last three months, setting the table for what promises to be one of the most competitive statewide contests of the midterm elections.
Democratic Rep. Jacky Rosen reported raising $1.185 million over the reporting period— which ran from July through the end of September — narrowly eclipsing the $1.105 million in contributions reported by Republican Sen. Dean Heller over the same time frame. Danny Tarkanian, who announced a primary challenge against Heller in early August, reported raising slightly more than $307,000.
Heller still leads the field with $4.2 million in cash on hand, while Rosen reported $1.2 million in the bank and Tarkanian holds $278,000 in available funds.
Although the initial contribution and spending figures were released in mid-October, the granular details and individual contributors take longer to analyze because of lax rules on campaign finance filing for Senate candidates.
Candidates for House races and president have been required to electronically file their quarterly FEC campaign finance information since 2001, but the same requirement doesn’t extend to Senate candidates. That means unless campaigns actively release their fundraising figures, it can take weeks before the actual reports are made available online and in a data-friendly format.
Many of the campaign donations poured in from out of state. Of Heller’s $1.1 million haul, more than $990,000, or about 90 percent, came from donors with out-of-state addresses, while Rosen’s reported contributions included more than $694,000, or about 59 percent, in non-Nevada based donations.
Tarkanian reported raising nearly $57,000, or about 19 percent, from sources outside of Nevada, with close to $224,000 coming from Nevada-based donors.
The only overlapping donor between any of the three candidates was longtime Las Vegas attorney Samuel Lionel, who gave $1,000 to Tarkanian and $2,000 to Rosen. That’s a similar pattern to donors in the state’s most competitive House races, which only saw a few overlapping donors giving to candidates in either party.
Rosen’s campaign reported that 92 percent of the 20,000 plus contributions received by the campaign were under $100. But the freshman congresswoman got help from sitting Democratic senators — at least of their 16 leadership PACs contributed to Rosen over the fundraising period.
Many of her major donors came from a variety of industries, from the founders of clothing retailers Zumiez and Patagonia to prominent California donor and possible candidate Tom Steyer and his wife, Kat Taylor.
Heller, too, received a significant chunk of change from at least 19 Republican leadership and joint fundraising PACs, including nearly $24,000 from the Heller-Flake Victory Committee, a joint fundraising committee for Heller and Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake, who recently announced he will not run for reelection in 2018. Other notable donors to Heller include five members of the wealthy Fertitta family, the owners of the World Famous Gold and Silver Pawn Shop and the founder of Starz Entertainment Group. (He also received a sizeable number of donations from executives from NV Energy and MGM Resorts International.)
Overall, political action committees and political parties donated more than $544,000 to Heller, compared to $159,000 for Rosen. Tarkanian didn’t receive any PAC donations over the reporting period.
Below, The Nevada Independent has highlighted noteworthy and top donors to Rosen, Heller and Tarkanian over the last reporting period. We’ve also compiled a helpful chart that you can click and drag around to see for yourself which donors have given to multiple candidates.
INTERESTING DONORS
Dean Heller
- $47,400 from the National Republican Senatorial Committee
- $41,700 from Citizens For Prosperity in America PAC, associated with Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Pat Toomey
- $27,000 from the Fertitta family, $5,400 each from Frank Fertitta, Kelley Fertitta, Lorenzo Fertitta, Nicco Fertitta and Victoria Fertitta.
- $23,544.68 from the Heller-Flake Victory Committee, started by Heller and Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake, who announced he is not running for re-election in 2018.
- $21,600 from Richard Harrison and his son Rick Harrison, co-owners of the World Famous Gold and Silver Pawn Shop, Richard Harrison’s wife Joanne Harrison and Rick Harrison’s wife Deanna Harrison.
- $11,975 from 2017 Senators Classic Committee, a joint fundraising committee
- $10,800 from R&R Partners chief government relations officer and Republican lobbyist Pete Ernaut and his wife, Wendy Ernaut
- $10,000 from Oorah! PAC, affiliated with Indiana Sen. Todd Young
- $10,000 from the Majority Committee PAC, affiliated with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy
- $10,000 from Coeur Mining PAC
- $10,000 from Comcast Corporation PAC
- $10,000 from FuelCell Energy PAC
- $10,000 from Select Medical Corporation
- $8,500 from Schneider National Inc. Trans PAC
- $8,000 from Citigroup Inc. PAC
- $7,500 from Arkansas for Leadership PAC, Republican Sen. John Boozman’s PAC
- $7,500 from Zuffa PAC, the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s PAC
- $6,500 from Ford Motor Company Civic Action Fund PAC
- $6,000 from Kidney Care Council PAC
- $6,000 from Kindred Healthcare Inc. PAC
- $5,900 from Gregory Maurer, director of U.S. public policy for Facebook
- $5,400 from Anthony Toti, CEO of Mesquite Gaming
- $5,400 from Dana White, president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship
- $5,400 combined from Michael and Tammy Dermody. Michael Dermody is the president of Las Vegas-based real estate development company Dermody Properties
- $5,400 from Ronald Gidwitz, co-founder of onsite meeting professional firm GCG Event Partners
- $5,400 from John Sie, founder of Starz Entertainment Group which is the parent company of premium networks Starz and Encore
- $5,000 from former Congressman Jon Porter
- $5,000 from Alamo PAC, which is affiliated with Texas Sen. John Cornyn
- $5,000 from Continuing America’s Strength and Security PAC, affiliated with Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy
- $5,000 from Denali Leadership PAC, affiliated with Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski
- $5,000 from Dirigo PAC, affiliated with Maine Sen. Susan Collins
- $5,000 from Fund for America’s Future PAC, affiliated with South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham
- $5,000 from Hawkeye PAC, affiliated with Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley
- $5,000 from Heartland Values PAC, affiliated with South Dakota Sen. John Thune
- $5,000 from Jobs, Opportunity & New Ideas PAC, affiliated with Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst
- $5,000 from JP Morgan Chase & Co Federal PAC
- $5,000 from Kelly PAC, affiliated with former New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte
- $5,000 from Quicken Loans Inc. PAC
- $5,000 from Reclaim America PAC, affiliated with Florida Sen. Marco Rubio
- $5,000 from Strategy PAC, affiliated with Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson
- $5,000 from Tenn PAC, affiliated with Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander
- $5,000 from Peter Norbeck Leadership PAC, affiliated with South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds
- $4,000 from former congressman and U.S. Senate candidate Joe Heck’s campaign account
- $3,700 from Albert Faccinto, president of international marketing for MGM Resorts International
- $3,000 from Greg Ferraro, a Republican lobbyist and president of the Ferraro group
- $2,700 from Robert Baldwin, chief customer development officer at MGM Resorts International
- $2,700 from Paul Caudill, president and CEO of NV Energy
- $2,500 from William Hornbuckle, president of MGM Resorts International
- $2,500 from Peter Kalmey, Chief Operating Officer of Kindred Healthcare
- $2,500 from NRA PAC
- $2,500 from SolarCity PAC
- $2,250 from Corey Sanders, chief operating officer of MGM Resorts International
- $1,750 from Daniel D’Arrigo, executive vice president and chief financial officer of MGM Resorts International
- $1,500 from Randy Morton, president and COO of the Bellagio
- $1,250 from Anton Nikodemus, chief operating officer of regional operations at MGM Resorts International
- $1,000 from Patrick Egan, senior vice president at NV Energy
- $1,000 from Shawn Elicegui, senior vice president of customer operations at NV Energy
- $1,000 from Michael Mathis, vice president of global gaming development for MGM Resorts International
- $1,000 from Terry Wang, executive vice president at MGM Resorts International
- $1,000 from Tom Loranger and The Paul Laxalt Group
- $750 from Niklas Rytterstrom, president and COO of the Luxor Hotel & Casino
- $1,250 from Steven Zanella, MGM Resorts International president of core properties
Danny Tarkanian
- $5,400 from Pedram Rahimi, a prominent Las Vegas designer.
- $5,400 from Nancy Houssels, co-founder of the Nevada Ballet Theatre.
- $2,700 each from Harry Nadjarian and his wife Cheryl. Harry Nadjarian founded Industrial Motor Power Corporation in Burbank, Calif.
- $2,700 from Singh Baktawar, a Jimmy Johns franchise owner in Clovis, Calif.
- $2,700 from Robert Peccole Sr, an attorney with the firm Peccole & Peccole
- $2,700 each from Edward, Jerry, Timothy and Troy Herbst. Jerry Herbst is the CEO and founder of Terrible Herbst.
- $2,500 each from Lud Corrao and his wife Patricia, who founded the prominent Las Vegas construction firm of Marnell Corrao Associates
- $1,000 from Samuel Lionel, an attorney with Fennemore Craig
- $1,000 from Diana Orrock, a Republican National Committeewoman from Nevada.
- $1,000 from William Boyd, executive chairman of the Boyd Gaming Corporation
Jacky Rosen
- $10,000 from Common Ground PAC, the leadership PAC of Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine
- $10,000 from Off The Sidelines PAC, affiliated with New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand
- $10,000 from Great Lakes PAC, affiliated with Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow
- $10,000 from Impact, the PAC affiliated with New York Sen. Chuck Schumer
- $10,000 from PAC for a Level Playing Field, affiliated with Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren
- $5,400 from Sonjia Smith, a major Democratic donor based in Virginia
- $5,400 from Andrew Golden, an investor and president of the Princeton University Investment Company
- $5,400 from Tom Campion, chairman and founder of speciality clothing store Zumiez
- $5,400 from Mark Heising, a managing director of a California investment firm
- $5,400 from California philanthropist Stephen Silberstein
- $5,400 from Thomas Fay, a Washington D.C. personal injury lawyer
- $5,400 from John Ceriale, founder and president of Prospect Hotel Advisors
- $5,400 from Michael O’Mary, an executive with investment firm The D.E. Shaw Group
- $5,400 from Jeffrey Seller, owner of production company Adventureland which produced the hit Broadway musical Hamilton
- $5,400 from Alan Rosenbloom, president & CEO of Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition, a Washington D.C. based group focused on long-term care pharmacy sector
- $5,400 from Michel Bills, founder and president of Bluestem Asset Management
- $5,400 from Elizabeth Simons, chair of the California-based Heising-Simons family foundation
- $5,400 from Susan Orr, founder and chairwoman of Telosa Software, which provides fundraising software to nonprofits
- $5,100 from Diane Meyer Simon, an environmental activist and founder of Global Green USA
- $5,000 from Committee for Hispanic Causes-BOLD PAC, the fundraising arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
- $5,000 from Fearless for the People PAC, affiliated with California Sen. Kamala Harris
- $5,000 from Prairie PAC, affiliated with Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin
- $5,000 from Granite Values PAC, associated with New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan
- $5,000 from Midwest Values PAC, affiliated with Minnesota Sen. Al Franken
- $5,000 from Nutmeg PAC, affiliated with Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal
- $2,800 total from Jessica Ledbetter, president of Thunderbird Ranch Corporation in Gardnerville.
- $2,700 from prominent California donor and political activist Tom Steyer
- $2,700 from Mark Headley, chairman of Matthews International Capital
- $2,700 from George Krupp, co-founder and chairman of the Berkshire Group, a real estate investment management company
- $2,700 from David Elson, president of United Staffing Associates, a temporary staffing agency based in California
- $2,700 from Barbara Lee, a Boston-based philanthropist and major Democratic donor
- $2,700 from Kat Taylor, co-founder of Beneficial State Bank. She’s married to prominent Democratic donor Tom Steyer.
- $2,700 from Yvon Chouinard, founder of clothing company Patagonia
- $2,700 from Robert Roche, a developer and businessman with businesses in the U.S., China and Japan
- $2,700 from Las Vegas Sun publisher Brian Greenspun
- $2,700 from Catherine Farahi, who’s married to Atlantis Casino Resort Spa CEO John Farahi
- $2,700 from Michael Ryan, an attorney with Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
- $2,600 from Robert Chester, president of the Nevada ACLU
- $2,500 from Free Syria PAC, a nonpartisan organization that advocates for a “free and democratic Syria.”
- $2,500 from Dakota Prairie PAC, affiliated with North Dakota Sen. Heidi Heitkamp.
- $2,500 from Educate & Innovate PAC, affiliated with Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey
- $2,500 from Keystone America PAC, affiliated with Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey
- $2,500 from NARAL Pro-Choice America PAC
- $2,500 from People’s Voice PAC, affiliated with Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin
- $2,500 from Treasure State PAC, affiliated with Montana Sen. Jon Tester
- $2,500 from Victory Now PAC, affiliated with Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen
- $2,000 from Jill Derby, a former congressional candidate and elected member of the Nevada System of Higher Education’s Board of Regents
- $2,000 from Las Vegas attorney Samuel Lionel
- $1,000 from Irving Epstein, the CEO and chairman of the El Cortez Hotel
- $1,000 from Monique Laxalt, a Reno-based attorney and member of the famous Laxalt family
- $680 total from Jeff Hardcastle, the Nevada state demographer
- $500 from Carolyn Edwards, a member of the Clark County School District's Board of Trustees
- $250 from Nevada District Court Judge Elissa Cadish
- $250 from Frankie Sue Delpapa, a former Nevada attorney general