A blue bloodbath: 10 big takeaways from Nevada's 2026 midterms

Nevada Democrats had their best election night in decades on Tuesday, flipping seats up and down the ballot as voters rebuked President Donald Trump.

The Nevada Independent's reporters break down their top takeaways from election night in Nevada.

1. The blue tsunami delivered historic results for Democrats. Nevada's 2nd Congressional District — created in 1981 — will flip to Democrats for the first time ever. Democrats secured Nevada's six statewide constitutional offices for the first time since 1962. Republicans previously secured all offices in 2014. A Democrat also appears likely to win Assembly District 13, which would be the first time that happened since Shelley Berkley did so in 1982. The three Southern Nevada congressional districts also went to Democrats by eyebrow-raising margins, with all incumbents earning hovering around 60 percent of the vote as of early Wednesday.

2. Being a Republican was enough to sink any candidate. As Democrats picked up unlikely wins in Nevada and across the country, even well-regarded Republican incumbents fell to the blue wave. State Controller Andy Matthews (R) lost his re-election bid despite his opponent, Democrat and high school teacher Michael MacDougall, raising far less money and running no ads. Assm. Rebecca Edgeworth (R-Las Vegas) won her blue-leaning Southern Nevada seat by 9 points in 2024 and calls herself "very moderate." She lost her bid for re-election — potentially by double digits, although the final margin isn't yet known.

3. Nevada's results can be painfully slow. Nevada was the last state to release its first election results — yes, even after Hawaii and Alaska — because of a state law that prohibits publishing results until the last person in line when polls close at 7 p.m. has voted. This year, some of the last voters in Clark County couldn't cast their ballots until nearly five hours after polls closed, and first results didn't come until just before midnight. It's not yet clear why. When asked about the delays, Clark County Registrar of Voters Lorena Portillo said "excitement" from voters was the root cause and that there was "no way to predict" when voters would come out. Will the Legislature do anything to change the state's approach? We're skeptical. 

4. Democrats gained a supermajority in the Assembly. Though some legislative races were too close to call as of early Wednesday, Democrats secured a two-thirds supermajority in the Assembly after ousting Edgeworth. The party is one seat shy in the state Senate, with two races still in play that could flip a seat in Democrats' favor. A supermajority in both chambers would let them easily raise taxes and override the governor's vetoes. The two potentially flippable state Senate seats are Northern Nevada's Senate District 16 and Southern Nevada's Senate District 20 — both are currently represented by Republicans and within striking distance by Democrats. In the Assembly, 8 races have yet to be called, all of them in districts held by Republicans.

5. Nevadans love Six-Seven? The two measureson the ballot this cycle, Question 6 and Question 7, passed overwhelmingly. Question 6 will enshrine the right to an abortion in Nevada's Constitution, while Question 7 will require that voters show a photo ID before voting. Although  abortion has been legalized in Nevada for decades, Question 6 proponents say it will bolster protections afterRoe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. For Question 7, voter ID proponents say it will increase election security, but it has been criticized for the potential to disenfranchise some voters. 

6. Shake-ups in Southern Nevada. Democrat Minja Yan, new to Nevada politics, won her bid for Clark County Commission District F. The commission is one of the most powerful governing bodies in the state of Nevada, and the 31-year-old will be among the more progressive members on the board. She was up against Assm. Heidi Kasama (R-Las Vegas) and nonpartisan Becky Harris, a former state senator. Yan declined to take corporate donors, and her platform focused strongly on building out long-term infrastructure such as light rail. 

7. Reno voters oppose developer-backed candidates. Developer and construction interests heavily backed Reno mayoral candidate Kathleen Taylor and Reno City Council candidate Summer Pellett. However, the two candidates, who are registered Republicans, faltered heavily, with both down by about 20 percentage points as of early Wednesday morning. Opposition to data centers were pivotal campaign issues in the Biggest Little City.

8. Money isn't gospel. Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) lost to Attorney General Aaron Ford (D) despite raising $25 million through his campaign and an affiliated PAC across the first nine months of this year. As of Wednesday morning, Assm. Brian Hibbetts (R-Las Vegas) was trailing his Democratic opponent, Daniel Andrews, despite Hibbetts raising about 31 times as much money as Andrews in the first nine months of this year. 

9. GOP turnout faltered on Election Day. Republicans needed a big turnout on Election Day to make up for the Democrats' advantage in early and mail voting, but it didn't happen. Democrats even built on their lead in Clark County, besting Republicans by more than 3,000 votes on Election Day.

10. What brought people to the polls? Exit polls by The Associated Press of 2026 voters in all 50 states found "the economy" and "the state of democracy" were voters' top two issues this year. In Nevada, 36 percent of voters polled said the economy was the most important issue facing the country, while 31 percent said it was the state of democracy. Those results closely mirrored the results nationwide. They also mirror recent, more in-depth surveys that have found Americans feeling pessimistic about the economy, unhappy with President Donald Trump (R) and concerned about corruption in the political system. 

Reporting by Tabitha Mueller, Mini Racker, Kate Reynolds, Oona Milliken, Isabella Aldrete and Eric Neugeboren