North Las Vegas City Councilmember Scott Black will be allowed to continue his run to be the city's mayor even though a win could put him over the state's 12-year limit for serving on the council. 

Clark County District Court Judge Jacqueline Bluth issued the ruling after a hearing Thursday. The judge ruled that the legal complaint was "denied on the merits," meaning that the legal argument was insufficient to move forward. 

"This is not an easy one," Bluth told the courtroom. "I do think that the statute is a plan, and I think that the reading of this does allow his candidacy." 

A lawsuit, filed in March shortly after Black's submitted paperwork to seek the office, argues that Black was ineligible to run because if he serves a full term as mayor, he will have spent 13 years on the city council.  Twelve years is the current term limit for elected officials to serve in one position, although others are in the same boat as Black because the Legislature changed an election schedule in 2019, adding an extra year to certain officials' terms. 

Black's name was slated to appear on the ballot, but the decision gives him permission to go on to the primary and general elections. His most serious competition for mayor is Nevada State Democratic Party chairwoman and Assm. Daniele Monroe-Moreno.

The Nevada Constitution was amended in 1996 to add term limits for candidates, but there have been several legal challenges to the amendment since then. 

"No person may be elected to any state office or local governing body who has served in that office, or at the expiration of his current term if he is so serving will have served, 12 years or more, unless the permissible number of terms or duration of service is otherwise specified in this Constitution," the law reads. 

During the hearing, Black's legal team argued that "current term" applied to Black's current seat in office, which allowed him to seek another four years to fulfill "12 years or more." The current mayor of North Las Vegas, Pamela Goynes-Brown, will also have served more than 12 years after her term ends. 

Bradley Schrager, representing the North Las Vegas resident and plaintiff Karin Rodriguez, argued that 12 years is the hard limit for candidates. When asked after the hearing if the plaintiff would appeal, Schrager did not respond directly but did nod to future action. 

"The people in North Las Vegas deserve to know the qualifications of their elected officials, under the terms of its amendment passed by the people in 1996," Schrager said. "We weren't allowed to answer that question today. We will in the future." 

In a text message statement to The Indy after the hearing, Black said the suit was a "politically motivated attempt to circumvent the will of the voters," and added that he was grateful for the judge's decision.