(Erica Neely) – As the saying goes, if you want to change the laws, you have to change the lawmakers.
And early voting results show I’m neck-and-neck with my opponent, Democrat Assemblyman Steve Yeager, in partisan turnout. So winning this seat in a historic upset is absolutely doable.
Here are some reasons why…
As Speaker of the Assembly, Mr. Yeager is directly responsible for cutting school choice scholarships for low-income, mostly minority, students and killing the governor’s proposal for a “gas tax holiday” to give you at least a little relief at the pumps.
He’s a married, “old white dude” who graduated from an Ivy League law school and started his legal career as a public defender. Not a prosecutor of criminals. A defender of criminals.
And he now works as a high-priced personal injury attorney.
His wife, also a former public defender, is a Clark County district court judge – whose annual salary plus benefits, according to Transparent Nevada, is over $300,000 per year. And the legal “power couple” has no children.
This is not a “middle class family” that understands the struggles and challenges you and I are going through these days.
Mr. Yeager has also been criticized for his Marco Polo-like world travels (at someone else’s expense) since 2020 which, according to his Financial Disclosure Statements, include . . .
- San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Dublin, Ireland (twice)
- Milan, Italy
- Bayeux, France
- Oslo, Norway
- Mexico City, Mexico
- Philadelphia, PA
- Scottsdale, AZ
- Seattle, WA
- Boston, MA
- Denver, CO
- Washington, DC
- Lexington, KY
- New Orleans, LA
- Nashville, TN
- Austin, TX
- Phoenix, AZ
- Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Napa, CA
- San Diego, CA
- Girdwood, AK
- Minneapolis, MN
- Indianapolis, IN
- Salt Lake City, UT
- Newport, RI
Meanwhile, many Nevada families can barely afford a day trip to Mt. Charleston!
In addition, there is a whirlwind of scandal surrounding Mr. Yeager.
He’s been caught overseeing a “culture of corruption” among his caucus members and running a “favor factory” in Carson City in which his Democrat colleagues enriched themselves and their friends at taxpayer expense.
By contrast, I’m a Latina woman with six children in a true middle-class family while Mr. Yeager lives a jet-set lifestyle of luxury, power and privilege. There’s no question that I better understand and identify with average voters.
Oh, and I actually live in the district I hope to represent!
You can’t change Steve Yeager’s mind on crime, education, illegal immigration, taxes, spending, and election security. The only option is to vote him out.
Yes, unseating an incumbent is tough. And unseating a sitting Assembly Speaker is even tougher. But as actor Michael “Beetlejuice” Keaton put it in a recent interview . . .
“There’s nothing I love more than people who try. You have to take risks whenever you can. Put yourself on the line. Don’t be afraid to look foolish and make mistakes. Taking those chances might just result in the best thing you will ever do.”
Imagine how you’ll feel on Election Night if you take this risk with me and we make history by defeating a powerful politician who’s done so much damage to our state and our people!
If you agree it’s time for a change, I ask for your vote.
Ms. Neely is the Republican candidate for Nevada Assembly District 9 in Clark County. For more information, please visit: www.neelyfornevada.com.