2020 General Election Ballot Recommendations

Election day (November 3) is just over two weeks out. Mail-in ballots are already in your mailbox. This column provides recommendations for the non-partisan offices and the ballot questions with a brief explanation where space permits.

University of Nevada Regent District 10: Kevin Melcher. Kevin’s brings prior experience on the Board of Regents along with a practical, results-oriented approach. Listen to podcast with Kevin Melcher

School Board Trustee, District A: Jeff Church. Jeff has excellent public service experience as a former USAF Lieutenant Colonel and a Retired Reno Police Sergeant. Listen to podcast with Jeff Church

School Board Trustee, District E: Matthew Montognese. Matthew is kind, gentle and thoughtful.

School Board Trustee, District G, At-Large: Craig Wesner. It is rare to have candidates of his caliber run for office. Craig is a very intelligent man with an impressive resume. Listen to podcast with Craig Wesner

Reno City Council Ward 1: JD Drakulich. JD is a smart and articulate consensus-builder. I like his opponent Jenny Brekhus, but Jenny picks too many needless fights. Elected office is often about working with people you don’t agree with, and Jenny has failed to do that. Listen to podcast with JD Drakulich

Reno City Council Ward 3: Rudy Leon. This is purely an anti-incumbent endorsement.

Reno City Council Ward 3: Neoma Jardon.

Reno City Council Ward At-Large: Eddie Lorton. Eddie is not beholden to anyone and will bring much-needed common sense to the city council. Listen to podcast with Eddie Lorton

Sparks City Council Ward 1: Donald Abbott. Abbott is a strong advocate for senior citizens and is considered intelligent and thoughtful by his colleagues. Listen to podcast with Sparks City Councilman Kris Dahir

Sparks City Council Ward 3: Paul Anderson. Paul is a leader and consensus-builder, this is precisely what we need on the Sparks City Council. Listen to podcast with Sparks City Councilman Kris Dahir

Supreme Court Justice, Seat D: Douglas Herndon. Doug will interpret the constitution as written; His opponent is a transplant from the legislative branch to the judicial branch and will legislate from the bench.

District Court Judge, Department 11, Family Court: Greg Shannon. Greg is well-regarded and will call balls and strikes. He will not legislate from the bench.

Court of Appeals Judge, Department 3: Bonnie Bulla.

District Court Judge, Department 10: Elliott Sattler.

District Court Judge, Department 11, Family Court: Greg Shannon.

District Court Judge, Department 13, Family Court: Bridget Robb.

State Ballot Question #1, Board of Regents: No. There are some really smart and respectable people on both sides of this issue. I am not seeing a tangible benefit as a consequence of passing this initiative. Besides, there are too many unknowns in terms of what the legislature will do once this initiative is passed. Listen to the Debate Podcast with Dr. John Gwaltney (former TMCC President) and Dr. Jason Geddes (Former Assemblyman and current Board of Regent member)

State Ballot Question #2, Same Sex Marriage: Yes. The US Supreme Court ruling overrides the state constitution and passage will have zero impact. Listen to ballot question expert analysis podcast with Randi Thompson

State Ballot Question #3, Board of Pardons: Yes. This adds structure to the Board of Pardons and removes the Governor’s current de facto veto status. Unless you are imprisoned or plan on being imprisoned, this will have no impact on you. Listen to ballot question expert analysis podcast with Randi Thompson

State Ballot Question #4, Voting Rights: No. Despite the title, this initiative adds little to existing voting rights statutes and is a total waste of time and ballot paper. Listen to ballot question expert analysis podcast with Randi Thompson

State Ballot Question #5, Renewable Energy Mandate: No. This will increase your power bill. This initiative is funded by California billionaire Tom Steyer, who “produced more coal around the world than all of Great Britain” (Joe Biden’s words, not mine!). Listen to ballot question expert analysis podcast with Randi Thompson

One final point: Information on candidates is sometimes hard to come by for non-partisan races. In making these recommendations, I have spoken with many of the candidates and recorded podcasts in several cases. For a deeper analysis of the districts and the candidates including party affiliation, fundraising, district composition and links to candidate podcasts and expert analysis, please visit sagebrushwire.com.