Nevada
Trump won’t win the Nevada primary. Here’s why he will still be the state’s 2024 nominee.
Donald Trump is going to lose Nevada’s Republican primary election next month, and the victory instead will likely go to Nikki Haley. Or maybe just “none of these.”
Confused? You’re not the only one.
Tens of thousands of Nevada GOP voters are discovering Trump’s name is absent from the primary ballots they’re receiving in the mail.
Instead of running in the Feb. 6 primary, Trump is participating in party-run caucuses two days later. Only the caucus results count toward selecting the state’s 26 Republican National Convention electors, but state law still requires a primary.
Voters can participate in both contests but candidates had to pick one or the other.
Nevada Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar said even his own friends are calling him up to complain, though his office been alerting voters about the dueling contests for months, sending out postcards, posting signs and speaking to the media.
“It’s one of those things where people aren’t paying attention until now,” he said. “I don’t know what else we could do.”
Why does Nevada have both a caucus and a primary election?
Normally, states hold either government-run primary elections or party-run caucuses, but not both.
Under a 2021 state law, Nevada is required to hold presidential primary elections as long as there are at least two candidates for a party’s nomination.
But Republican Party officials ‒ many of whom participated in a 2020 effort to subvert the presidential election results in Trump’s favor ‒ decided last year to hold a binding caucus. They also tried unsuccessfully to stop the state from holding the primary.
“Why is there a caucus? Because the state Republican Party thinks that will help Trump,” said Dan Lee, an associate professor of political science at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.
What did the Nevada Republican Party say about having caucuses?
In a statement, the Nevada GOP said it considered the primary election a waste of taxpayer dollars, and that party business should be funded and conducted by the party itself. Caucus supporters say they’re the best way to test a candidate’s appeal to the party faithful, and require candidates to demonstrate they can organize and turn out voters.
“Simply put, candidates who participate in an illegitimate process cannot expect to earn legitimate delegates to the Republican National Convention,” the party said.
To learn more: When is the next presidential election? Everything to know about Election Day 2024.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was participating in the caucuses until he dropped out earlier this month, while former Vice President Mike Pence chose to run in the primary, until he dropped out at the end of October. Like Tim Scott, the South Carolina senator who also ended his campaign, Pence will still appear on the primary ballot because the ballots were finalized before he quit the race.
How are the Nevada caucuses and primary different?
Because party officials get to set their own caucus rules, Nevada GOP officials are requiring in-person participation and ID verification at the caucuses, which they argue provides better election security and saves taxpayer funds.
In a taxpayer-funded primary election, run by Aguilar’s office and county clerks, voters can cast their ballots by mail or in person. It’s also open to military members serving overseas.
Aguilar said primary elections are typically considered more inclusive than caucuses because more voters can participate, instead of only those able to attend on Feb. 8. And it’s typically easier for a candidate to qualify for the primary ballot.
Why did Haley decide to run in the Nevada primary?
Because Trump supporters control the Nevada GOP, Haley never stood a chance of winning the caucuses, which tend to draw the most die-hard party supporters, Lee said. Instead, Haley likely hopes she’ll win enough votes in the primary to show she has broad support.
Also, candidates who wanted to participate in the caucus had to pay the state party $55,000 or host a fundraiser on its behalf, making it an expensive proposition for candidates lacking Trump’s massive fundraising apparatus.
“In these early states, it’s not about winning delegates per se. We’re all small states, so it’s about setting, or meeting and exceeding expectations to help build momentum,” Lee said. “It’s easier to cast a wider net by running in the primary ‒ she was doing it to try build a narrative, to display her support among primary voters. Early on in the race, everyone is just trying to be the runner-up to Trump.”
What are Republicans saying about the dueling Nevada caucus and primary?
Gov. Joe Lombardo and Lt. Gov. Stavros Anthony have both said they plan to caucus for Trump and vote for “none of these candidates” in the primary.
Trump is set to visit Las Vegas on Jan. 27 for a ” commit to caucus” rally.
Given the situation, Lee, the UNLV professor, said it’s possible Haley could lose the primary even though Trump isn’t in it: “It could be the case that ‘none of these candidates’ gets the most votes.”
RENO, Nev. (News 4 & Fox 11) — Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo (R) is in a strong position heading into the thick of his 2026 reelection bid — a huge war chest, almost universal name recognition and strong favorability numbers among the electorate.
Though Lombardo is likely focusing on the general election already, he faces 6 longshot candidates in the GOP primary seeking to upset him in June.
Nevada Governor GOP primary: 6 longshot candidates taking on incumbent Joe Lombardo
The challengers face a ‘Herculean’ task, said Mike Noble, CEO and founder of Noble Predictive Insights, an Arizona-based nonpartisan pollster focusing on the Southwest region.
“I see it as a Herculean task for anyone. If someone was coming in with like, I don’t know $10 million or something to spend, sure I can see that might be competitive, but I don’t see any of them coming anywhere near close to that. And so again, I just think I think it’s a non-factor at this point,” Noble said.
RELATED | Ballot Battleground: Nevada podcast: Early Noble poll shows dead heat in governor’s race
Despite the long odds, News 4-Fox 11 reached out to all candidates requesting an interview as part of our commitment to 2026 election coverage and our Know Your Candidates series. Three of the 7 running interviewed with us — Irina Hansen, Kameron Hawkins, Lombardo and Jose Zelaya did not respond to multiple emails requesting an interview.
We asked them similar questions about Gov. Lombardo’s leadership as governor, how they would pass a balanced budget and whether they support taxpayer subsidies for sports teams or major projects.
Click the candidate’s name to watch their full interview. Quotes below have been edited for space and clarity.
Donald J. Beaudry Jr. is an entrepreneur who founded BlkEdgeAi, a financial technology firm specializing in AI-driven trading systems and market strategy, according to his campaign website.
He told News 4-Fox 11 that Nevada has been drifting the last four years with ‘no captain, no vision.’ He believes his Wall Street-like trading market called NGEX (Nevada Global Exchange) would generate enough revenue to eliminate sales taxes, property taxes, business taxes and vehicle registration fees.
“I completely blueprinted it out and calculated that this model could generate enough revenue in this state that we could eliminate all the state taxes and fees that are currently in place and use that as the revenue source for the state and make everybody, every man, woman and child throughout Nevada, a shareholder in the dividends of that exchange … it would be a kind of Wall Street type of stock market, but far broader, more advanced, and exponentially more profitable.”
Matthew Rian Winterhawk is the founder of SmartSlaps foundation, a nonprofit that works to help schools and students with civic engagement and community responsibility.
If elected, he described going through a DOGE-like review of the state budget to determine which areas can be cut or kept depending on their ‘dollar to impact’ ratio.
“What I would like to do is go through every department, I’m talking top to bottom, from here from the primary to the beginning. We will cut every piece of administrative bloat across the system … I need more money for my teachers. Teachers never see it, students never see it, the impact never reaches the classroom. It’s 100% administrative bloat.”
The son of immigrants, Barak Zilberberg is now an entrepreneur and real estate investor based in Las Vegas. He ran for governor in 2022, earning 0.2% of the vote in the GOP primary. He told News 4-Fox 11 he’s also running for President in 2028.
He said he’s running for governor to improve the educational system, bring jobs to Nevada and open up federal land to build more affordable housing.
“We’ve got get high-speed railing systems in here where we can transit very easily, efficiently, and basically moving around between economies of both cities. Not only that, I’d like to bring Disneyland here and the Olympics, sponsor the Olympics here. I just want to make this a well-known place of entertainment, a hub.”
To help voters make informed decisions this election year, News 4-Fox 11 is publishing and broadcasting dozens of interviews with candidates who will appear on the June primary ballot.
In fairness to all candidates, they were asked a series of similar questions. We are posting the full interviews online so voters can watch their responses in their entirety.
Visit our Know Your Candidates 2026 page to view other race previews and meet other candidates.
Email reporter Ben Margiott at bjmargiott@sbgtv.com. Follow @BenMargiott on X and Ben Margiott KRNV on Facebook.
LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — One woman is dead following a head-on collision on US-95 Sunday afternoon.
Nevada Highway Patrol responded to a report of a crash at 4:41 p.m. at mile marker 105, approximately 45 miles north of Beatty. The crash involved two sport utility vehicles.
One adult female driver was confirmed dead at the scene. The other driver was transported to a local area hospital with injuries.
MORE ON FOX5: Report: Nevada traffic deaths down 33% for April
No road closures are in effect. Investigations are being conducted on the southbound shoulder area.
Nevada Highway Patrol, a division of the Nevada State Police, is asking motorists to slow down and use caution in the area as troopers and investigators work at the scene.
Further information will be provided following the preliminary investigation.
Copyright 2026 KVVU. All rights reserved.
Nevada
Northern Nevada gardens and backyards: Controlling insects with systemic insecticides – Carson Now
Last week I wrote about soft versus armored scale insects. Soft scales exude honeydew, are protected by ants and can be controlled by systemic insecticides, some of which have the active ingredient imidacloprid. Armored scales do not emit honeydew and are not managed by an imidacloprid insecticide.
Imidacloprid is a systemic neonicotinoid insecticide that is designed to kill piercing/sucking insects via damage to their nervous system. Systemic means it is applied on the leaves, stems or as a soil drench and spreads internally throughout the plant. When an insect feeds on any part of the plant such as the pollen, nectar, flowers, fruit, leaves, or other plant tissues, it ingests the toxic chemical and dies.
Systemic insecticides can kill not only pests such as soft scales, but also their natural enemies and non-target/beneficial insects such as bees and other pollinators, including butterflies, moths and their larvae. They also can “adversely affect reproduction, growth, insect immune systems, learning, flying, or other attributes even at concentrations too low to cause death outright.” Native bees, who often nest in the ground, can be more susceptible than honeybees, particularly to soil drench applications.
Systemic insecticides kill over time at a steady concentration, which can cause a longer toxic exposure. Although it is often suggested to apply in the evening when insects aren’t out, or after flowering season, harmful exposures can still occur. These chemicals can last for months or years in soil. They sometimes leach into groundwater but fortunately are usually only slightly toxic to fish. One application may provide season long control.
Chemical insecticides are always a last resort. The risks versus benefits must be carefully evaluated. A healthy thriving plant is one of the best defenses against scale or other insect damage. Good watering, the appropriate amount of fertilizer and maintenance keep a plant resistant to attacks. Predators, including lady beetles, bugs and lacewings, play an important part in pest management.
Plant a diversity of flowering plants to attract and feed natural enemies. Sometimes when you see scales on a plant, they may have already been parasitized by parasitic wasps. If a large number are parasitized, there are eggs in or on each scale eating away at them. Sometimes scales are no longer alive and do not require a pesticide treatment. Check before applying insecticides. Using tape traps to monitor crawlers will help you accurately time the use of horticulture oils, Neem oil or insecticidal soap. Dormant oil treatment on deciduous woody plants will help kill overwintering scale pests and reduce future populations.
JoAnne Skelly is an Associate Professor and Extension Educator, Emerita, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. She can be reached at skellyj@unr.edu.
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