Appeal will challenge ruling on special election

CARSON CITY -- The Nevada Supreme Court will quickly hear Secretary of State Ross Miller's planned appeal of a judge's decision to let political parties pick U.S. House nominees for a Sept. 13 special election, a court spokesman said Friday.

As expected, Miller on Friday asked the attorney general to file the appeal. He also postponed the candidate filing period, which had been scheduled for Monday through Wednesday in Carson City.

The special election was called to replace former 2nd Congressional District Rep. Dean Heller, a Republican. He was appointed to complete the term of U.S. Sen. John Ensign, who resigned amid scandal. On May 5, Miller set the rules for the special election, saying it would be open to all major party candidates, minor party nominees and independents who could collect 100 signatures of registered voters.

The Nevada Republican Party sued Miller, objecting to a free-for-all contest that would crowd the ballot and hurt the party's chances of holding the district. It covers all of rural and Northern Nevada and a bit of Clark County, and has always been in GOP hands.

The Republicans contend Nevada law requires political parties to hold central committee meetings to nominate one candidate each to put on the ballot since there's no primary in the special election.

On Thursday, 1st District Judge James Todd Russell sided with the GOP and against the Democratic Party, which helped defend Miller's rules. Russell enjoined the secretary of state from moving ahead with his plan to open up the ballot to all comers. And the judge gave the parties until June 30 to nominate one candidate each for the ballot.

The judge ruled from the bench and planned to release a formal written ruling quickly.

As soon as the ruling is filed, the attorney general is expected to immediately file an appeal with the Nevada Supreme Court.

Bill Gang, a spokesman for the high court, said the justices would expedite the case and give it "high profile" status. He said the court has acted quickly in previous similar cases so that election officials have enough time to prepare the ballot and send it out to voters.

"No one can say exactly how long this will take," he said, because it may depend on how complicated the case is.

The high court panel is largely moderate, according to observers. Justice Kris Pickering is the most conservative member and Justice Michael Cherry is the most liberal. The remaining justices -- James Hardesty, Nancy Saitta, Ron Parraguirre, Mark Gibbons and Chief Justice Michael Douglas -- are moderate to slightly right of center. Hardesty and Pickering both live within the 2nd Congressional District.

Miller, a Democrat, announced the appeal in a short statement. "We are still awaiting the written order of the court and may have further statements once it is issued," he said.

If the judge's decision stands, Nevada Republican Party chairman Mark Amodei is considered the leading GOP candidate for a party nomination. State Sen. Greg Brower of Reno also is making strides to gain support from the more than 350 central committee members statewide.

Sharron Angle, a tea party favorite who lost to U.S. Sen. Harry Reid last year, doesn't have much establishment GOP backing and probably would lose out in an insider's contest. Former USS Cole Commander Kirk Lippold also isn't expected to gain much party support.

The GOP central committee has scheduled a June 18 meeting in Sparks to choose a nominee and pick a new party chairman.

On the Democratic side, State Treasurer Kate Marshall has the inside track to be the nominee if party leaders choose. Two other Democrats also are in the running: former Nevada Democratic Party chairwoman Jill Derby and Nancy Price, who both have lost to Heller before.

The Democratic Party has a meeting scheduled for June 25 in Tonopah. That could be the venue for picking a nominee if necessary.

Contact reporter Laura Myers at lmyers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2919.