Faces in NLV race for mayor familiar

North Las Vegas City Councilwoman Stephanie Smith filed her candidacy for mayor Wednesday, joining fellow council members Shari Buck and William Robinson in the race for term-limited Mayor Michael Montandon's seat.

Smith, 51, is at the end of her third term as representative for the city's Ward 3, and cannot run again for the post because of term limits.

Robinson and Buck filed their candidacies for mayor on Tuesday.

Also filing Wednesday in North Las Vegas were Rolando Cruz, a candidate for City Council Ward 1, and Michael Little, who is running for City Council Ward 3.

Robert Eliason currently holds the Ward 1 seat and is expected to seek a third term.

In Las Vegas, there are now four people seeking the open Ward 4 seat on the City Council.

The latest to join is Yvonne Karim, a U.S. Airways flight attendant who moved to the city in 2005. She said she was moved to run after her family struggled with the economic issues hitting people's lives -- her husband lost his job, she was injured and out of work for more than a year, their home almost went into foreclosure and her elderly mother is ill.

"I'm just one of many this is happening to," she said. "It's happening to people everywhere."

She expressed admiration for former Councilman Larry Brown, who held the Ward 4 seat before going to the Clark County Commission, and said she hadn't taken a stance yet on what will probably be a divisive campaign issue: Plans for downtown redevelopment and a new city hall.

Glenn Trowbridge, who had previously announced his interest in the Ward 4 seat, also filed Wednesday. Trowbridge is a former Clark County administrator who sits on the Las Vegas Planning Commission.

The other candidates are Stavros Anthony, a Las Vegas police captain and university system regent, and Gary Hosea, a Clark County employee who previously sought a County Commission seat. Anthony has said he is retiring from the police force and was looking for something to do afterward.

Filing for municipal elections opened Tuesday and closes Feb. 6. The primary will be April 7, with the general election June 2.

Contact reporter Lynnette Curtis at lcurtis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0285. Contact reporter Alan Choate at achoate@reviewjournal.com or 702-229-6435.