Nevada has already climbed the Presidential primary calendar, establishing itself in the slate of early states that vote prior to Super Tuesday.

But now Democratic party leaders want to move up to first in the nation, with the Nevada Dems officially submitting their bid to the DNC last month.

Why is Nevada deserving of the coveted top spot?

In the first episode of season 3 of Ballot Battleground: Nevada, host Ben Margiott speaks to DNC Vice Chair Artie Blanco about Nevada’s bid to become the first Democratic presidential contest in 2028.

We unpack how the DNC sets the calendar, why Nevada’s diversity and battleground status matter, and what lessons were learned from the 2024 primary shake-up.

Plus, what a “Nevada first” calendar could mean for voters, campaigns, and national policy priorities.

WATCH Ballot Battleground: Nevada on YouTube

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Ballot Battleground: Nevada is back for Season 3.

2026 is an election year — and here in Nevada, the stakes are high. From Congressional races and a crucial Governor’s race to state and local contests and major ballot questions, we’re covering it all.

I’m Ben Margiott, a reporter at News 4 Reno and Fox 11, and I'm passionate about breaking down Nevada politics to make it more accessible, more digestible, and more relevant for voters across our critical battleground state.

Season 3 kicks off February 4, with new episodes every other Wednesday to start — and weekly episodes as Election Day approaches.

Listen on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. And new this season, you can watch full episodes on YouTube on the News 4 Reno page.

Subscribe, follow, and get ready for the 2026 election season.

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After 7 days, Nevada lawmakers adjourned the state’s 36th special legislative session sine die late Wednesday.

The week was packed with unexpected surprises, important policy debates, long lulls in the action and criticism about the lack of transparency.

From a rare procedural move that nearly derailed film tax credits on day 1 to lawmakers adding their own bill to the agenda for the first time ever, it was a dramatic special session - which could have major implications for 2026.

This episode, host Ben Margiott breaks down everything that happened — floor debates, committee hearings, and behind-the-scenes negotiations — with the reporters who were there every day: Tabitha Mueller and Eric Neugeboren of The Nevada Independent and Paul Boger of KNPR.

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In the 2026 midterms, Washoe County will — once again — have someone new running its elections.

Andrew McDonald is the county’s new registrar of voters — the 4th person to hold that job since 2022.

But McDonald says he’s in it for the long haul and he's got some big goals: moving the registrar’s office to a bigger location, continuing to clean up the voter rolls, and bringing in new voting machines that leave a paper record for every ballot cast in person.

In Nevada election quirk, high card draw breaks tie in rural Washoe County trustee contest

RGJ: Election security: Pilot program will focus on voter rolls | Clara Andriola

Critic of Washoe election integrity turns to praise with new voter roll challenge

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It's mail time at Ballot Battleground: Nevada. This week, we're digging through the listener mailbag once again with News 4 and Fox 11 morning show anchor Chris Murphy.

Host Ben Margiott and Chris answer questions ranging from tax reform and John Doe's identity to open primaries and the cost of a special legislative session.

Do you have questions for our next mailbag? Send them to [email protected] and put Ballot Battleground: Nevada in the subject line.

Does Nevada need property tax reform? Legislative push renewed amid budget shortfalls

Bonus episode: Rep. Mark Amodei on the federal government shutdown

Nevada Rep. Mark Amodei on tariffs, Signalgate, DOGE, immigration and more
How much will Lombardo's special session of Nevada Legislature cost? Here's what we found

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Legislators will be headed back to Carson City this fall for another special session of the Nevada legislature — the sixth since 2020.

Governor Joe Lombardo announced he wants them to finish some 'unfinished business' in the next few months.

So when exactly will that be? What still needs to get done? And why have there been so many special sessions lately?

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It's day 10 of the federal government shutdown and it seems Congress is no closer to an agreement to reopen the government.

Amid the partisan standoff, we got the chance to sit down with Northern Nevada's representative in the U.S. House, Republican Mark Amodei.

In this bonus episode, we asked Amodei why he opposes extending the Affordable Care Act subsidies, whether he supports the effort to ensure military members are paid and whether he would call out GOP leaders for continuing to use talking points about illegal immigrants deemed 'highly misleading.'

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In August, Nevada government agencies were hit with a crippling ransomware attack.

But against that backdrop — and with concern over Nevadans’ personal information still fresh — the Department of Justice is now requesting driver’s license records and partial Social Security numbers for every registered voter in the state.

Nevada Secretary of State concerned about DOJ requests for voter data

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ICE arrests are surging in Nevada as the Trump administration moves forward with its mass deportation agenda promised in the campaign.

In this episode, we go beyond the headlines to hear from both sides of the immigration debate.

First, Athar Haseebullah of the ACLU of Nevada explains why his organization is fighting back against what it sees as government overreach.

Then, Bruce Parks, chair of the Washoe County Republican Party, makes the case for why he supports mass deportations.

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President Trump’s second term has put mass deportations back at the center of U.S. politics — and Nevada offers a revealing look at what that means on the ground.

In part 1 of our two-part series, host Ben Margiott talks to reporter Kim Burrows, who witnessed several ICE arrests during an exclusive ridealong in May.

Then, we turn to The Nevada Independent’s Eric Neugeboren and Isabella Aldrete, who crunched the numbers to answer a pressing question: Who is ICE actually arresting in Nevada — violent criminals, or people whose only offense is crossing the border illegally?

ICE arrests multiple people with alleged criminal pasts during northern Nevada operation

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