Kihuen to pursue 1st Congressional seat

CARSON CITY -- State Sen. Ruben Kihuen, D-Las Vegas, said Thursday that he intends to run for the 1st Congressional District seat now that election district maps have been approved by a judge.

Kihuen, 31, previously had announced his congressional bid ambitions but did not specify the district. With Carson City District Judge James T. Russell approving congressional and other election district maps Thursday, Kihuen almost immediately announced a District 1 bid.

The district has a 43 percent Hispanic population and Kihuen, born in Mexico, wants to become the first Hispanic from Nevada elected to Congress.

Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., represents the district but intends next year to run for the U.S. Senate.

Former Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., also has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the seat.

"This is the district where I graduated from high school and college," Kihuen said in a statement. "This is the district where I have worked for the past decade. The district where I attend church, and the district where I live. I represented this community as an assemblyman, it is the district that I represent as a state senator, and I look forward to representing this district in Congress."

The district contains much of Las Vegas and urbanized portions of Clark County.

Kihuen, first elected to the Legislature in 2006, noted that under the maps approved by Russell, Democrats enjoy a
27 percentage point registration advantage over Republicans.

Contact Capital Bureau Chief Ed Vogel at evogel@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3901.