ASSEMBLY DISTRICT 29

It is widely considered one of the state's few swing districts, so it's no surprise that lots of time and money are being poured into the wide-open race in Assembly District 29.

Republican Sean Fellows has raised well over $100,000 since announcing his candidacy in August -- of 2007.

Democrat April Mastroluca is newer to the race, but she has socked away more than $75,000 in contributions since she rolled out her campaign in late April.

District 29 has been one of the Assembly's most divided. Two years ago, Republicans held the edge by eight registered voters. Democrats, buoyed as they were elsewhere by the January caucus in Nevada, now enjoy a roughly 1,000-voter lead there.

"It's definitely a district that could go either way," Fellows said.

"It's going to be a real nail-biter," Mastroluca said.

This is the first run for public office for each candidate.

It originally looked as if Fellows would face two-term incumbent Susan Gerhardt, but in April, the Democrat announced she would not seek re-election for health reasons. Gerhardt is now supporting Mastroluca's candidacy.

Fellows is a Minnesota native who landed in Las Vegas five years ago, when he was transferred to Nellis Air Force Base.

He now serves as an intelligence officer in the Air Force Reserve.

He has a bachelor's degree from the University of Saint Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., and is pursuing a master's degree at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Mastroluca is an Eldorado High School graduate who has lived in Las Vegas since she was 6 months old.

She works as a field representative for the National Parent Teacher Association and has spent time in Carson City, advocating for children in the past four legislative sessions.

On Nevada's sputtering economy, Mastroluca said there is no "magic bullet," but she supports some of Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley's ideas, including a push to round up millions in uncollected taxes and a close examination of various tax breaks the state now grants.

"Those seem to be common-sense things we should have been doing all along," she said.

She does not favor layoffs to balance the state budget, especially in areas such as education.

Fellows thinks all state spending merits review.

"It's not a revenue problem, it's a spending problem," he said. "Clearly we need to go to an annual budget."

And Fellows wants that budget to be zero-based, so all expenditures in all departments can be reviewed and adjusted each year as necessary.

He also supports a four-day work week for state employees and public-private partnerships that would lead to items such as toll roads and state prisons run by private contractors.

As for his opponent, Fellows has tried to paint Mastroluca as a puppet for the state's Democratic leadership, which has supplied some 70 percent of her campaign war chest.

Mastroluca acknowledged the help she got from her party to catch up after getting a late start in the race. And she said people should not be surprised if she votes with Democrats on some issues because she is one. But she said she is anything but a puppet.

Mastroluca, who has worked extensively in Carson City, including as a legislative lobbyist for a nonprofit, said she had never met Buckley or Assemblyman John Oceguera before she decided to run.

Contact reporter Henry Brean at hbrean@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0350.