Democrats will not gain the coveted two-thirds supermajorities in both chambers of the Legislature that would allow them to override Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo's vetoes.

As of Nov. 12, Republicans prevented supermajorities in both chambers of the Legislature after winning 15 seats in the 42-member Assembly and eight seats in the 21-member state Senate. 

Though Republicans gained one seat in the state Assembly and kept the number of seats they held in the Senate, Democrats maintained majorities in both chambers, leaving the executive branch under Republican control and the legislative branch in the hands of Democrats.

Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager (D-Las Vegas) and Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro (D-Las Vegas) successfully fended off challenges from Republican opponents. Cannizzaro and Yeager’s races were too close to call on election night, but as more ballots were tabulated, the two widened their leads.

Sen. Dallas Harris (D-Las Vegas) was the only incumbent running for re-election to lose her seat.

With the majority unable to override his vetoes, Lombardo has touted himself as a one-man roadblock to the Democratic majority’s policy priorities. In 2023, he set a record for the most vetoes issued in a single legislative session, rejecting 75 of the 611 bills passed by the Legislature. 

Among the bills Lombardo scuttled that Democrats have highlighted this election cycle are a raft of housing bills that would have added new tenant protections and overhauled the state’s summary eviction procedures, measures to lower the cost of prescription drugs and a measure that would have continued funding universal free school breakfasts and lunches at K-12 schools. 

Democrats have already announced they plan to bring back versions of the vetoed bills in 2025.

Outside of the 2014 “red-wave” election and subsequent legislative session, Democrats have maintained control of both houses of the Legislature since 2009, fueled by the “Reid Machine” built by longtime U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). The party further bolstered its structural advantages in congressional and legislative races in 2021 through control of the redistricting process, which saw Democrats redraw state maps.

Republicans have had more luck winning the governor’s seat, however, and can play a formidable defense against Democratic legislative majorities from that perch. Lombardo and his allies have taken an active role in picking and boosting candidates — mostly moderate Republicans — who have campaigned on the goal of preventing one-party rule in the Legislature.

The result has been a competitive cycle, with Democrats and Republicans neck and neck in fundraising and cash on hand. 

Eleven seats in the 21-member Senate were not up for election this cycle, leaving 52 legislative races that determined Lombardo’s veto power. 

Nine of the seats up for election in the Legislature (seven in the Assembly and two in the Senate) were already decided because there was no challenger from an opposing party; four of the Assembly seats and one Senate seat that are already decided will be held by Republicans. 

Below, we break down the status of supermajorities in each chamber of the Legislature and the consequential legislative races we watched this election cycle.

STATE SENATE 

Senate District 5 - Sen. Carrie Buck (R-Henderson) defeated Jennifer Atlas (D) by a wide margin

In the swing district covering portions of Henderson and Paradise, Buck defeated Atlas. 

Senate District 6 - Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro (D-Las Vegas) won her race against Jill Douglass

Cannizzaro defeated Douglass in this Southern Nevada district.

Senate District 11 - Lori Rogich (R) defeated Sen. Dallas Harris (D- Las Vegas)

Rogich triumphed in the swing district located in the fast-growing area of the southwestern Las Vegas Valley, bounded by the 215 Beltway, Interstate 15 and Durango Drive.

Senate District 15 - Assemblywoman Angie Taylor (D-Reno) won her race against Mike Ginsburg (R)

Taylor had a wide lead over Ginsburg in the district covering southwestern Washoe County, which used to favor Republicans but shifted to have a significant Democratic voter registration advantage under the state’s 2021 redistricting process.

The seat is open after Sen. Heidi Seevers O'Gara (formerly Seevers Gansert) (R-Reno) announced last year that she would not run for re-election.

ASSEMBLY

Assembly District 4 - Lisa Cole (R) prevailed in her race against Ryan Hampton (D)

In the race for this open seat in northwest Las Vegas, currently held by a Republican, Cole defeated Hampton.

The seat is open after Assemblyman Richard McArthur, a Republican, launched an unsuccessful bid for state Senate. The seat has been Republican-held since 2020, but it is no stranger to tight races and has narrow voter registration margins between the two major parties.

Assembly District 5 — Assemblywoman Brittney Miller (D-Las Vegas) won her race against Kelly Quinn (R)

Miller won in this Southern Nevada district.

Assembly District 9 - Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager (D-Las Vegas) triumphed in a race against Erica Neely (R)

Yeager eked out a victory in the reliably blue district in Southern Nevada.

Assembly District 12 - Assemblyman Max Carter (D-Las Vegas) won his race against Nancy Roecker (R)

Carter narrowly defeated Roecker.

Assembly District 16 - Assemblywoman Cecelia Gonzalez (D-Las Vegas) defeated James Neville (R)

Gonzalez retained her seat in this Southern Nevada district. 

Assembly District 21 — Assemblywoman Elaine Marzola (D-Las Vegas) defeated April Arndt (R)

Marzola narrowly won in her race against Arndt.

Assembly District 25 - Assemblywoman Selena La Rue Hatch (D-Reno) won her race against Diana Sande (R)

La Rue Hatch defeated Sande in the sprawling swing district, which extends from Bartley Ranch to Reno’s Northgate community and includes parts of the city’s old southwest and northwest neighborhoods and Caughlin Ranch communities.

Assembly District 29 - Joe Dalia (D) triumphed in his race against Annette Dawson Owens (R)

Dalia has won the open, long-competitive, slightly Democrat-leaning district that cuts across large swaths of Henderson. The seat is open after five-term Democratic Assemblywoman Lesley Cohen announced she would not be running for re-election.

Assembly District 34 - Hanadi Nadeem (D) won her contest against Brandon Davis (R)

Nadeem has defeated Davis in the Summerlin-area Assembly District 34. Assemblywoman Shannon Bilbray-Axelrod (D-Las Vegas) vacated the seat to run for Clark County Commission this year. Bilbray-Axelrod lost to attorney April Becker, who will become the first Republican in 20 years to be elected to the Clark County Commission.

Nadeem will be the first Muslim woman elected to the Legislature.

Assembly District 35 - Rebecca Edgeworth (R) was the victor in her race against Sharifa Wahab (D) 

Edgeworth won this Southern Nevada race. The seat is being vacated by Assemblywoman Michelle Gorelow (D-Las Vegas). 

Assembly District 37 - Assemblywoman Shea Backus (D-Las Vegas) fended off challenger David Brog (R)

Backus won by a small margin in this race in Summerlin.

Assembly District 41 - Sandra Jauregui (D-Las Vegas) won her race against Rafael Arroyo (R)

Jauregui narrowly defeated Arroyo in Assembly District 41, which straddles St. Rose Parkway and includes parts of Henderson and unincorporated parts of Clark County.

This story was updated at 2:00 p.m. on 11/6/2024, at 9:50 a.m. on 11/7/2024 and at 12:21 p.m. to include the latest race calls by The Nevada Independent.