We’ve talked a bit about Nevada tonight, and whether 2022’s political environment, which favors Republicans, will cause Democrats to lose their hold there. If that seems surprising to you, that’s fair (but it might not be if listen to the pod 😉). Right now, three out of Nevada’s four House seats are held by Democrats, and both of their Senate seats are too. Both chambers of Nevada’s state legislature are controlled by Democrats (and consistently so).
And correlated with Democratic control in the state has been the election of more women to public office. As I mentioned earlier on the live blog, Nevada’s congressional caucus is 67 percent female! Much higher than the House average (which, as of tonight, is 27%). And their state legislature is more than 50 percent female, the first in the country to break that record.
Democratic groups in Nevada have been leaders when it comes to recruiting women at the local level, which is a strong predictor of electing women to higher office. As Amelia and I have written about, local organizations are crucial to recruiting and supporting women — plenty of research shows that women see themselves as less qualified to run for office, so they need more support early (both financial and moral!). I’m curious to see if Republican gains in Nevada will turn back the state’s progress in electing women, and also if gains by Republicans at the federal level trickle down to the local level in 2022.