Nevada's 2nd congressional district

Nevada's 2nd congressional district
Nevada's 2nd congressional district
	Interactive map of district boundaries. Points indicate major cities in the district with a population over 50,000, ordered by population (Reno, Sparks, and Carson City).
Representative	Mark Amodei; R–Carson City
Population (2021)	766,406
Median household; income	$74,468
Ethnicity	67.4% White; 21.5% Hispanic; 4.0% Asian; 2.7% Two or more races; 2.5% other; 1.9% Black;
Cook PVI	R+8

Nevada's 2nd congressional district is a congressional district that includes the northern third of the state. It includes most of Lyon County, all of Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Pershing, Storey, and Washoe counties, as well as the state capital, Carson City. The largest city in the district is Reno, the state's third largest city. Although the district appears rural, its politics are dominated by Reno and Carson City. As of 2017, over 460,000 people reside in Washoe County alone, totaling about two-thirds of the district's population.

The district was initially created after the redistricting cycle after the 1980 Census, when Nevada was split into districts for the first time. From then until 2013, it occupied all of the state outside of Clark County. From 1993 to 2013, it also included the far northern portion of Clark County. Until 2013, it was the third-largest congressional district by land area that did not cover an entire state. Even though it lost much of its southern portion to the new 4th District after the 2010 census, it is still the fifth-largest district in the nation that does not cover an entire state.

The 2nd district has always leaned Republican. It has been represented by only four people since its creation, all Republicans. Democrats have only made four serious bids for the seat. In presidential elections, the district has historically voted Republican; George W. Bush won the district by 20 points in 2000 and 16 points in 2004. However, in the 2008 election John McCain earned only 88 votes more (out of 335,720 votes) than Barack Obama in the district.

Former state Senator Mark Amodei has held the seat since 2011 after he won the special election to replace Dean Heller, who was appointed to the United States Senate following the resignation of John Ensign.

2011 special election

On April 21, 2011, U.S. Senator John Ensign (R-Nev.), plagued by scandal and facing an inquiry by the Senate Ethics Committee, announced his resignation effective May 3.^[3] On April 27, Governor Brian Sandoval announced he would appoint Dean Heller, the 2nd district's third-term congressman, to fill out Ensign's term in the Senate. Heller had already planned to run for the seat after Ensign announced a month earlier that he would not run for a third term. To fill the vacancy created by Heller's resignation on May 9, Sandoval was required to call a special election to be held within six months of the occurrence of the vacancy.^[4]

A special election was held on September 13, 2011. Former Republican state senator Mark Amodei defeated Democratic State Treasurer Kate Marshall.^[5]

Voting

Election results from presidential and statewide races^[6]

Year	Office	Result
1984	President	Reagan 69 – 29%
1988	President	Bush 62 – 35%
1992	President	Bush 38 – 33%
1996	President	Dole 47 – 39%
2000	President	Bush 57 – 37%
2004	President	Bush 57 – 41%
2008	President	McCain 49 – 49%
2012	President	Romney 53 – 45%
2012	Senator	Heller 64 – 25%
2014	Governor	Sandoval 53 – 45%
2016	President	Trump 52 – 40%
2016	Senator	Heck 65 – 27%
2018	Governor	Laxalt 68 – 25%
2018	Senator	Heller 68 – 26%
2020	President	Trump 53 – 43%

List of members representing the district

Member (Residency)	Party	Years	Cong ress	Electoral history	District location
District created January 3, 1983
Barbara Vucanovich (Reno)	Republican	January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1997	98th 99th 100th 101st 102nd 103rd 104th	Elected in 1982. Re-elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1986. Re-elected in 1988. Re-elected in 1990. Re-elected in 1992. Re-elected in 1994. Retired.	1983–1993 Carson City, Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Esmeralda, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Pershing, Storey, Washoe, and White Pine; part of Clark
Barbara Vucanovich (Reno)	Republican	January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1997	98th 99th 100th 101st 102nd 103rd 104th		1993–2003 Carson City, Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Esmeralda, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Pershing, Storey, Washoe, and White Pine; part of Clark
Jim Gibbons (Reno)	Republican	January 3, 1997 – December 31, 2006	105th 106th 107th 108th 109th	Elected in 1996. Re-elected in 1998. Re-elected in 2000. Re-elected in 2002. Re-elected in 2004. Resigned after elected Governor of Nevada.
Jim Gibbons (Reno)	Republican	January 3, 1997 – December 31, 2006	105th 106th 107th 108th 109th		2003–2013 Carson City, Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Esmeralda, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Pershing, Storey, Washoe, and White Pine; part of Clark
Vacant		December 31, 2006 – January 3, 2007	109th
Dean Heller (Carson City)	Republican	January 3, 2007 – May 9, 2011	110th 111th 112th	Elected in 2006. Re-elected in 2008. Re-elected in 2010. Resigned when appointed U.S. senator.
Vacant		May 9, 2011 – September 13, 2011	112th
Mark Amodei (Carson City)	Republican	September 13, 2011 – present	112th 113th 114th 115th 116th 117th 118th	Elected to finish Heller's term. Re-elected in 2012. Re-elected in 2014. Re-elected in 2016. Re-elected in 2018. Re-elected in 2020. Re-elected in 2022.
Mark Amodei (Carson City)	Republican	September 13, 2011 – present	112th 113th 114th 115th 116th 117th 118th		2013–present Carson City, Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Pershing, Storey, and Washoe; part of Lyon

Election results

1982

1982 election^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Barbara Vucanovich	70,188	55.49
	Democratic	Mary Gojack	52,265	41.32
	Libertarian	Teresa Vuceta	4,043	3.20
Total votes			126,496	100.0
	Republican win (new seat)

1984

1984 election^[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Barbara Vucanovich (Incumbent)	99,775	71.21
	Democratic	Andrew Barbano	36,130	25.79
	Libertarian	Dan Becan	4,201	3.00
Total votes			140,106	100.0
	Republican hold

1986

1986 election^[9]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Barbara Vucanovich (Incumbent)	83,479	58.41
	Democratic	Pete Sferrazza	59,433	41.59
Total votes			142,912	100.0
	Republican hold

1988

1988 election^[10]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Barbara Vucanovich (Incumbent)	105,981	57.26
	Democratic	Jim Spoo	75,163	40.61
	Libertarian	Kent Cromwell	3,953	2.14
Total votes			185,097	100.0
	Republican hold

1990

1990 election^[11]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Barbara Vucanovich (Incumbent)	103,508	59.08
	Democratic	Jane Wisdom	59,581	34.01
	Libertarian	Dan Becan	12,120	6.92
Total votes			175,209	100.0
	Republican hold

1992

1992 election^[12]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Barbara Vucanovich (Incumbent)	129,575	47.91
	Democratic	Pete Sferrazza	117,199	43.33
	Independent American	Daniel M. Hansen	13,285	4.91
	Libertarian	Dan Becan	7,552	2.79
	Populist	Don Golden	2,850	1.05
Total votes			270,461	100.0
	Republican hold

1994

1994 election^[13]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Barbara Vucanovich (Incumbent)	142,202	63.50
	Democratic	Janet Greeson	65,390	29.20
	Independent American	Thomas F. Jefferson	9,615	4.29
	Natural Law	Lois Avery	6,725	3.00
Total votes			223,932	100.0
	Republican hold

1996

1996 election^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jim Gibbons	162,310	58.56
	Democratic	Thomas "Spike" Wilson	97,942	35.26
	Independent American	Daniel M. Hansen	8,780	3.17
	Natural Law	Lois Avery	4,628	1.67
	Libertarian	Louis R. Tomburello	3,732	1.35
Total votes			277,192	100.0
	Republican hold

1998

1998 election^[15]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jim Gibbons (Incumbent)	201,623	81.05
	Independent American	Christopher Horne	20,738	8.34
	Libertarian	Louis R. Tomburello	18,561	7.46
	Natural Law	Robert W. Winquist	7,841	3.15
Total votes			248,763	100.0
	Republican hold

2000

2000 election^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jim Gibbons (Incumbent)	229,608	64.50
	Democratic	Tierney Cahill	106,379	29.88
	Independent American	Daniel M. Hansen	5,582	1.57
	Green	A. Charles Laws	5,547	1.56
	Libertarian	Terry Savage	5,343	1.50
	Citizens First	Ken Brenneman	2,367	0.66
	Natural Law	Robert W. Winquist	1,143	0.32
Total votes			355,969	100.0
	Republican hold

2002

2002 election^[17]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jim Gibbons (Incumbent)	149,574	74.34
	Democratic	Travis O. Souza	40,189	19.97
	Independent American	Janine Hansen	7,240	3.60
	Libertarian	Brendan Trainor	3,413	1.70
	Natural Law	Robert W. Winquist	784	0.39
Total votes			201,200	100.0
	Republican hold

2004

2004 election^[18]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Jim Gibbons (Incumbent)	195,466	67.15
	Democratic	Angie G. Cochran	79,978	27.48
	Independent American	Janine Hansen	10,638	3.65
	Libertarian	Brendan Trainor	4,997	1.72
Total votes			291,079	100.0
	Republican hold

2006

2006 election^[19]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Dean Heller	117,168	50.35
	Democratic	Jill Derby	104,593	44.94
	Independent	Daniel Rosen	5,524	2.37
	Independent American	James C. Kroshus	5,439	2.34
Total votes			232,724	100.0
	Republican hold

2008

2008 election^[20]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Dean Heller (Incumbent)	170,771	51.82
	Democratic	Jill Derby	136,548	41.44
	Independent American	John Everhart	11,179	3.39
	Libertarian	Sean Patrick Morse	5,740	1.74
	Green	Craig Bergland	5,282	1.60
Total votes			329,520	100.0
	Republican hold

2010

2010 election^[21]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Dean Heller (Incumbent)	169,458	63.30
	Democratic	Nancy Price	87,421	32.66
	Independent American	Russell Best	10,829	4.05
Total votes			267,708	100.0
	Republican hold

2011 (special)

2011 special election^[22]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mark Amodei	75,180	57.92
	Democratic	Kate Marshall	46,818	36.07
	Independent	Helmuth Lehmann	5,372	4.14
	Independent American	Timothy Fasano	2,421	1.87
Total votes			129,791
	Republican hold

2012

2012 election^[23]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mark Amodei (Incumbent)	162,213	57.63
	Democratic	Samuel Koepnick	102,019	36.25
	Independent American	Russell Best	6,051	2.15
	Independent	Michael Haines	11,166	3.97
Total votes			281,499	100.0
	Republican hold

2014

2014 election^[24]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mark Amodei (Incumbent)	122,402	65.73
	Democratic	Kristen Spees	52,016	27.93
	Independent American	Janine Hansen	11,792	6.33
Total votes			186,210	100.0
	Republican hold

2016

2016 election^[25]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mark Amodei (Incumbent)	182,676	58.30
	Democratic	H.D. "Chip" Evans	115,722	36.93
	Independent American	John H. Everhart	8,693	2.77
	Independent	Drew Knight	6,245	1.99
Total votes			313,336	100.0
	Republican hold

2018

2018 election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mark Amodei (Incumbent)	167,435	58.2
	Democratic	Clint Koble	120,102	41.8
Total votes			287,537	100.0
	Republican hold

2020

2020 election^[26]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mark E. Amodei (incumbent)	216,078	56.5
	Democratic	Patricia Ackerman	155,780	40.7
	Independent American	Janine Hansen	10,815	2.8
Total votes			382,673	100.0
	Republican hold

Historical district boundaries

Notes

^ "My Congressional District".
^ "Introducing the 2021 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index". The Cook Political Report. April 15, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
^ Demirjian, Karoun (April 21, 2011). "Sen. John Ensign to resign, Dean Heller likely replacement". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
^ Damon, Anjeanette; Demirjian, Karoun (April 28, 2011). "Dean Heller in U.S. Senate shifts landscape in state politics". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
^ http://www.chron.com/news/article/Republicans-keep-northern-Nevada-House-seat-2169620.php. Retrieved September 14, 2011. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)^{[dead link‍]}
^ Presidential Election Results, by district, swingstateproject.com
^ "1982 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "1984 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "1986 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "1988 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "1990 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ 1992 Election Results
^ "1994 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ 1996 Election Results
^ "1998 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "2000 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "2002 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "2004 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "2006 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "2008 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "Congressional results". www.nvsos.gov. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "2011 Official Special Election Results September 13, 2011". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
^ "2012 Official Statewide General Election Coverage and Reports". www.nvsos.gov. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
^ "Silver State Election Night Results – 2014". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
^ "Silver State Election Night Results – 2016". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
^ "Silver State 2020 Election Results - U.S. Congress". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved November 27, 2020.

References

Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

40°39′04″N 117°19′47″W / 40.65111°N 117.32972°W / 40.65111; -117.32972

[1] "My Congressional District".

[Cook-2] "Introducing the 2021 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index". The Cook Political Report. April 15, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2021.

[3] Demirjian, Karoun (April 21, 2011). "Sen. John Ensign to resign, Dean Heller likely replacement". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved April 29, 2011.

[4] Damon, Anjeanette; Demirjian, Karoun (April 28, 2011). "Dean Heller in U.S. Senate shifts landscape in state politics". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved April 29, 2011.

[5] ttp://www.chron.com/news/article/Republicans-keep-northern-Nevada-House-seat-2169620.php. Retrieved September 14, 2011. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)^{[dead link‍]}

[6] Presidential Election Results, by district, swingstateproject.com

[7] "1982 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[8] "1984 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[9] "1986 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[10] "1988 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[11] "1990 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[12] 1992 Election Results

[13] "1994 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[14] 1996 Election Results

[15] "1998 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[16] "2000 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[17] "2002 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[18] "2004 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[19] "2006 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[20] "2008 Election Results" (PDF). Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[21] "Congressional results". www.nvsos.gov. Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[22] "2011 Official Special Election Results September 13, 2011". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved July 29, 2019.

[23] "2012 Official Statewide General Election Coverage and Reports". www.nvsos.gov. Retrieved November 7, 2018.

[24] "Silver State Election Night Results – 2014". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved January 17, 2017.

[25] "Silver State Election Night Results – 2016". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved January 17, 2017.

[NVgenr-26] "Silver State 2020 Election Results - U.S. Congress". Nevada Secretary of State. Retrieved November 27, 2020.

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