President Donald Trump is waging a proxy war with the Nevada GOP establishment as his handpicked candidate looks to prevail in Tuesday’s primary to replace retiring Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV). Trump-backed David Flippo will face former state Senate Republican leader James Settelmeyer, who is backed by both Gov. Joe Lombardo (R-NV) and Amodei, in the June 9 primary. The seat, rated “Solid Republican” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, almost guarantees the Republican nominee will win in November. Lombardo is backed by Trump, as was Amodei before he announced his retirement, putting the pair at odds with the president despite his endorsements.
The race is also another test of Trump’s endorsement strength after suffering a defeat in last week’s Iowa primary. Trump-endorsed Rep. Randy Feenstra (R-IA) lost to Zach Lahn in the Republican gubernatorial primary.
Prior to Feenstra’s loss, Trump’s winning streak with endorsements included defeating Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and John Cornyn (R-TX), as well as Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY).
Amodei wrote off Trump’s endorsement of Flippo late last month as he reaffirmed his support for Settelmeyer.
“The home team has done just fine,” the Nevada congressman wrote. “The time has not come for a national private political organization to pick for Nevadans, who speaks for them in the U.S. House of Representatives.”
