Churchill County Voters Split From Statewide Election Results - The Fallon Post

Churchill County voters broke sharply from statewide trends in the November 3 general election, favoring Republican candidates even as Democrats secured victories across much of Nevada.

While the state’s most populous areas drove a Democratic sweep of executive offices, the rural electorate maintained a distinct political identity. According to unofficial results updated Nov. 9 by the Nevada Secretary of State’s Office, the Democratic candidates were ahead in the contests for attorney general, controller, treasurer, secretary of state, lieutenant governor, and governor.

The divide between the urban centers and the rural heartland was most visible in the governor’s race. Democrat Aaron Ford won the statewide contest with 51.62% of the vote, while Republican Joe Lombardo trailed at 44%. However, The Fallon Post reported that Lombardo received nearly 70% of the vote in Churchill County, compared to just 23.51% for Ford.

This pattern of divergence was not limited to the governorship. In the five other statewide executive races, Churchill County voters delivered significant margins to Republican candidates, who each received between 65.54% and 70.86% of the vote.

The rural divide on constitutional amendments

The election results highlighted a significant disagreement between Churchill County and the rest of the state regarding constitutional changes. Two statewide ballot questions, which had originally passed in 2024 and required a second vote in 2026 to amend the state Constitution, saw split results.

Question 6, a measure to add a right to abortion under certain circumstances to the Nevada Constitution, passed statewide with 63.50% support. In Churchill County, voters rejected the amendment, with 5,435 people, or 57.04%, voting no. This stood in stark contrast to Clark and Washoe counties, where more than 65% of voters approved the measure.

Conversely, Question 7—which mandates identification for in-person voting or specific identifying information for mail ballots—found broad consensus. The measure received 62.17% support statewide and was approved in all 17 counties. Support was particularly high in Churchill County, where 79.45% of voters cast a yes vote.

The following table compares the performance of the two major candidates in the governor’s race across different regions:

Region	Aaron Ford (D)	Joe Lombardo (R)
Statewide	51.62%	44.00%
Churchill County	23.51%	~70.00%
14 Rural Counties (Combined)	N/A	67.47%

Shifting power in Congressional District 2

The political landscape for Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District is also in flux. Democrat Teresa Benitez-Thompson led the districtwide race with 50.25%, while Republican David Flippo received 44.28%. This result follows the decision by incumbent Republican Mark Amodei not to seek reelection.

If these results hold, Democrats are positioned to control all four of Nevada’s U.S. House seats when the new Congress convenes in January. Despite the districtwide trend toward Benitez-Thompson, Churchill County voters favored Flippo, giving him 63.26% of the vote compared to 28.51% for Benitez-Thompson.

In local races, Churchill County voters also signaled a desire for change in law enforcement leadership. With 65.82% of the vote, Michael Davis won a commanding victory over the incumbent, Sheriff Lee Orozco, who received 34.18%.

Other local election outcomes included:

School Board: For the four available seats on the Churchill County School Board of Trustees, Amber Casey-Getto topped the results with 22.09%.
County Question No. 1: Voters rejected a proposal to continue a property tax levy for major fire equipment purchases, with 54.22% voting no.
Unopposed County Offices: Six Republicans, including Commissioner Myles Getto and District Attorney Art Mallory, ran unopposed.

The results remain unofficial pending formal certification.