Caccavale returns to Nye County clerk race with election-security platform

Andrew Caccavale is trying to make the Nye County clerk’s office a referendum on election security, returning to the race with a platform built around voter ID, tighter mail-ballot eligibility rules and a paper-ballot-first system with parallel machine counts.

His bid comes after a real shake-up in county administration. Mark F. Kampf’s resignation became effective April 1, 2024, and Nye County commissioners later discussed how to fill the unexpired term. Now the office is again on the ballot as Nye County prepares for the June 9, 2026 Primary Election, with the county already posting filing periods, requirements and deadlines.

Caccavale, who works as a political consultant, says his first run taught him the pace and pressure of campaigning and left him better prepared for a second try. Before entering politics full time, he spent 18 years as a high school teacher, covering American history, global history and quantum physics. He points to that background as proof that he can manage a complex office and bring a disciplined approach to the clerk’s duties.

The clerk’s office is far more than an election counter. Its responsibilities include elections, voter registration, marriage licenses, fictitious firm names, notary bonds and appointments to county boards and commissions. The clerk also serves as ex-officio clerk for the Board of Commissioners, the Board of Equalization and the Debt Management Commission, making the race about who will oversee several of the county’s most visible administrative functions, not just ballots on Election Day.

Caccavale’s core argument is that Nye County needs more layers of verification. He wants voter ID rules, stricter eligibility standards for mail ballots and a parallel machine count to check paper ballots against the first tally. He argues that approach would add another safeguard against hacking and counterfeit ballots, a message aimed directly at voters who still have questions about how the county handles election security and ballot handling.

The race also carries the weight of recent county history. In 2022, official Nevada primary results listed Ian Bayne and Andrew Caccavale as Republican candidates for Nye County clerk, and the general-election results were accepted by the Nevada Supreme Court on November 22, 2022. That earlier contest ended with Kampf winning the office before his resignation two years later.

As the county searches for election workers for the 2026 primary, with applications due May 1, 2026, the clerk’s office is also urging voters to verify their registration details after Nevada’s automatic voter-registration changes took effect January 1, 2025. In Nye County, the clerk’s race is shaping up as a test of who voters trust to manage those systems when the next round of ballots arrives.