Republican Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo has toppled incumbent Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak, winning the Nevada governor's office for Republicans. Sisolak and Lombardo had been locked in a dead heat in recent polls, even as Sisolak enjoyed dominant support among state Latino voters.
Lombardo somewhat tepidly sought to distance himself from the (dominant) extremist wing of his party in the election's last months, and in a debate, explicitly rejected Donald Trump's claims of a "stolen" election. But that was as far as he went, at the same debate, praising the coup-attempting Trump as a "sound President." Lombardo also made campaign appearances with "Big Lie" promoters like Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and the racist conspiracy promoter Tommy Tuberville.
Were Nevada voters convinced by the version of Lombardo that rejected Republican coup backers, or the version that stood onstage with them? Maybe exit polls can sort that out.
Holy crap, what an amazing night! Where do we even begin this week's episode of The Downballot? Well, we know exactly where: abortion. Co-hosts David Nir and David Beard recap Tuesday's extraordinary results, starting with a clear-eyed examination of the issue that animated Democrats as never before—and that pundits got so badly wrong. They also discuss candidate quality (still really important!), Democratic meddling in GOP primaries (good for democracy, actually), and "soft" Biden disapprovers (lots of them voted for Democrats).