Most Nevada pundits believe the governor's race was the biggest political story of 2006.

But a corruption scandal that began when the century turned amid fears of Y2K actually played out bigger this year than a late-breaking scandal in November's gubernatorial election. A cocktail waitress's claim that Jim Gibbons assaulted her after a night of drinking certainly triggered scandal, but it didn't compare in the least to the prostitution of our elected officials at the feet of strip club owner Michael Galardi.

"I'm on my knees begging," the words uttered by former Clark County Commissioner Erin Kenny, will go down in the annals of Las Vegas politics. The gubernatorial slogans, "Let Titus unite us" or, "Only in Nevada can you have the American dream" won't.

Voters I've talked to this year were so sickened by the actions of Kenny and ex-commissioners Dario Herrera and Mary Kincaid Chauncey, detailed in court this year, that they almost expect all Southern Nevada elected officials to be on the take.

Witness after witness in the federal trial described how quickly our elected officials were corrupted.

Even Kenny, who pleaded guilty to taking the most money, still took less than most of us would have demanded for risking our freedom. If you're going to throw it all away -- your political career and being around to see your kids each day -- you'd think they would've been on the hook for a million or more.

But we saw just how easily they were bought. And with one fell swoop of guilty verdicts, we wondered just who else violated the public trust.

The stench from the federal courthouse permeated public life like no other scandal this year -- and there were plenty of others, from questions about the integrity of the local judiciary to allegations of sweetheart deals at City Hall.

Against the backdrop of the corruption trial, every politician looked dirty, every vote for a developer was questioned and every judicial decision was scrutinized against a judge's campaign contributions, friendships and business deals.

The ascendancy of Democrat Harry Reid to the post of Senate majority leader would, in any other year in Nevada, be a big deal. But this year it came with questions about Reid's own ethics -- he accepted free ringside tickets to a boxing match from the Nevada Athletic Commission, he tipped hotel staff from his campaign coffers and he failed to make a full report of profits from a land sale.

The trial influenced this year's election. The only competitive Clark County Commission races were referendums on corruption. Incumbent Myrna Williams lost her Democratic primary by double digits because voters just weren't convinced she voted with Herrera, Kenny and Kincaid-Chauncey because the policy was correct. Challenger Chris Giunchigliani exploited the corruption trial to win a lopsided victory.

And incumbent Lynette Boggs McDonald fell victim to her own ethical problems when voters went to the polls amid questions about her residency and a land deal in Arizona that sure looked sweet.

State Sen. Sandra Tiffany lost her re-election bid amid questions she used her office to benefit her online auction business. Tiffany last week stipulated she had violated state law -- she was a few steps behind the voters.

The corruption trial, six years in the making, led to the inevitable questions about what would have happened had the feds wiretapped every council member, county commissioner, state lawmaker and constitutional officer. It certainly makes you wonder.

Gov.-elect Gibbons will enter office next week with a few questions still remaining about how he helped his buddy Warren Trepp nab a lucrative federal contract for his Reno-based business.

Maybe the press will pay more attention to who gets money from the Gibbons budget and who gets appointed to various state boards and commissions. Maybe the public will watch the upcoming session of the Legislature with a greater sense of skepticism. But 63 lawmakers do present 63-plus potential conflicts, from lobbying law firm partners to public employees asking for policy.

That's not to say, however, that the Legislature will feel pressured to pass much in the way of ethics reform. Maybe state lawmakers will approve further campaign contribution limits on local officials or start the process to change the way judges get their jobs.

Wholesale changes in the corruptible system we have just won't be on the agenda. After all, that would require more restrictions on what state legislators can do.

The cloud of corruption will continue to envelop all public officials. And that's a story that won't be contained by any calendar.

Erin Neff's column runs Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. She can be reached at 387-2906, or by e-mail at eneff@reviewjournal.com.