Some came for the exposure to scores of potential voters.
Welcome to the Nevada Day Parade during an election year. The annual event brought incumbent and aspiring elected officials to Carson City on Saturday, giving the statehood celebration a decidedly political feel.
The parade participants somewhat resembled this year’s ballot: Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto and her Republican challenger, Adam Laxalt, waved to onlookers along the route. So did Republican gubernatorial candidate Joe Lombardo; Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford and his Republican opponent, Sigal Chattah; and Democratic Treasurer Zach Conine and his Republican rival, Michele Fiore, among others.
Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak had a float in the parade, but he did not participate because of security threats, a spokesperson with the governor’s office said. Instead, Sisolak spent the afternoon giving tours of the governor’s mansion in Carson City.
The festivities surrounding Nevada’s 158th birthday, which technically falls on Monday, coincided with the early vote period. Ahead of the midterm election on Nov. 8, Nevada voters are already filling out their mail ballots or casting their votes in person.
The roughly four-hour parade, which slowly marches through the downtown area of Carson City, gave political candidates another chance to connect with voters, but it also gave Nevadans a real-life glimpse of the men and women whose faces are donning campaign mailers, billboards and television ads.
But the hoopla wasn’t entirely politics-related. Similar to past years, the Nevada Day celebration featured rock drilling and beard contests, among other activities surrounding the parade. Ahead of the event, Bobby Bean, president of the Nevada Day Board of Directors, encouraged attendees to wear capes and costumes for the ”Carnivál On The Comstock” theme.
“Carnivál represents colorful floats, upbeat music, it’s a reason to dress up and have fun!” Bean wrote in a press release announcing the theme earlier this year.
Photographer David Calvert captured the spirit of the Nevada Day celebrations through his camera lens:
Young girls with posters supporting Ballot Question 1 and the Equal Rights Amendment attend the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Republican gubernatorial candidate and Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo greets Wyler Smith, a supporter from Fallon, during the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Gov. Steve Sisolak and First Lady Kathy Sisolak greet people after they toured the Governor's Mansion following the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)The Douglas High School marching band performs in the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto poses for a group photo with her supporters before the start of the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Adam Laxalt, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, passes out candy during the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)A pair of clowns with the Ronnie Johnson Family of Clowns laugh at the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. Ronnie Johnson, a longtime Carson City resident, passed away in 2011. For many years he organized a group of clowns made up of family and friends, that would march in the parade. This year marked the group's return, their first time in more than 10 years, since Johnson's death. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Lt. Gov. Lisa Cano Burkhead marches with the Foothill High School marching band at the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. Cano Burkhead was the principal of Foothill High School in Henderson from 2015-2021. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Republican candidate for lieutenant governor Stavros Anthony rides in a vehicle during the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Carson City Sheriff's deputies on duty at the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Adrienne and Destiny Jim wear a red hand print on their face to bring awareness of murdered and missing Indigenous women at the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Attorney General Aaron Ford takes a group selfie with members of his office before the start of the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Republican candidate for attorney general Sigal Chattah waves a flag during the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)His Excellency President Grand Admiral Colonel Doctor Kevin Baugh of the Republic of Molossia and First Lady, Madame Adrianne Baugh, ride in the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Republican candidate for state Treasurer Michele Fiore rides in the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Assemblyman Steve Yeager carries a campaign sign for state Treasurer Zach Conine during the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)A home builder heads to work as hot air balloons rise ahead of the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Democratic candidate for secretary of state Cisco Aguilar passes out candy during the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Republican secretary of state candidate Jim Marchant walks in the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)Elizabeth Elton, dressed as the Nevada flag, poses for a photo during the Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)The Carson City Republican Party's entry in the Nevada Day Parade passes in front of the Legislature in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)A sign pointing to the voting center at the Carson City Community Center in Carson City on Oct. 29, 2022. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Correction (Nov. 1, 2022, at 12:35 p.m.): A photo caption of a picture featuring Attorney General Aaron Ford has been updated to correct who was surrounding him.
