Nye County finalizes unofficial primary results ahead of canvass vote

Nye County’s final unofficial primary numbers put several key power centers within reach of new leadership, with Debra Thomas, Matt Sadler and Kayla Ball ahead in races that help shape the county commission, the clerk’s office and other day-to-day government functions. The close margin in the district attorney contest, along with a crowded sheriff’s race, kept the final canvass relevant because a few hundred ballots still mattered in offices that affect budgets, prosecutions, elections and law enforcement.

The Board of County Commissioners was set to canvass the June 9 primary on its June 18 agenda, a required step under Nevada law after all precinct and district returns are received. State law says the board must complete that canvass on or before the sixth working day after the election, making Thursday the last formal checkpoint before the unofficial totals became official.

In the county commission races, Thomas led incumbent Ron Boskovich in District 4, 53.3 percent to 46.8 percent, giving her the stronger hand in a contest that will help determine who sits at the table on county spending, land-use decisions and local policy. In District 5, Sadler led with 51.9 percent, while incumbent Debra Strickland had 13.3 percent, Jeff Snow had 31.5 percent and Brett Fish had 3.3 percent. That race was important not only because it decided a commission seat, but because it reflected how voters split in a field with multiple challengers and an incumbent trying to hold on.

The district attorney race was even tighter. Incumbent Brian Kunzi held 51.3 percent, while Michelle Nelson trailed at 48.7 percent, leaving a small gap in an office that directs prosecutions in Nye County. Kayla Ball had a wider lead in the clerk’s race, 60.5 percent to 23.0 percent over incumbent Cori A. Freidhof, with Andrew Caccavale at 16.5 percent. Ball would inherit an office central to elections, records and public access if that result holds. Public administrator Bill Hockstedler also led Ginger L. Simpson, 55.9 percent to 44.1 percent, in a post that handles estates when no private administrator is in place.

The nonpartisan sheriff’s race remained unsettled in the sense that no candidate cleared 50 percent. Incumbent Joe McGill led with 41.2 percent, followed by Dan Pineau at 24.3 percent, Stan Hyt at 21.4 percent and George Wehrly at 13.0 percent. Under Nevada’s rules, the top two advance when no one wins outright.

Turnout gave the race added context. Nye County reported 12,556 ballots cast out of 37,114 active registered voters, a turnout of 33.8 percent. That total included 9,118 mail ballots, 1,906 early votes and 1,532 election-day votes. The county clerk’s office had earlier said about 190 ballots still needed to be counted and 130 ballots required signature cures by June 15, underscoring why the canvass mattered even after the final unofficial report was released. The county’s 2022 primary turnout was 17.89 percent, and its 2024 presidential preference primary turnout was 28.77 percent, showing this year’s primary drew comparatively stronger participation. Nye County also maintains historical election results back to 2008, giving residents a long record for measuring how often these countywide contests come down to small margins.