Assembly Bill 126 was introduced to the Nevada legislature on Monday.
The bill outlines the requirement for conducting a presidential primary election in Nevada. If passed, the primary would take place the second to last Tuesday in a presidential election year.
Nevada currently uses the caucus system in which voters from each political party gather to elect delegates. The system was criticized last year when many people were reluctant to gather because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The bill is sponsored by Assemblyman Jason Frierson, Assemblywoman Teresa Benitz-Thompson and Assemblywoman Brittney Miller.
Nevada State Democratic Party Chair William McCurdy II released the following statement regarding Assembly Bill 126:
“Expanding access to the presidential nominating process in Nevada is something NV Dems have worked on for many years and Assembly Bill 126 is a critical next step. Last year, Democrats did incredible work to make our caucuses more accessible by including early voting and introducing multilingual trainings and materials, but the only way we can bring more voices into the process is by moving to a primary.
“This legislation is yet another reason the Silver State deserves to be the first presidential nominating state in 2024. We are a majority-minority state with a strong union population and the power structure of the country is moving West. I want to thank Speaker Frierson, who has devoted his career in the Assembly to make our voting process more expansive and equitable, for his help in securing Nevada’s spot on the national stage.”
This legislation changes Nevada’s presidential nominating process from a caucus system to a primary separate from the June down-ballot primary and includes ten days of early voting and same-day voter registration.
It moves the date of the primary to the second to last Tuesday in January making Nevada the first in the nation presidential nominating state. Read the text of the bill here.
