Reactions to the Feb. 22, 2020 Nevada Caucuses

[reverse chronological]
Nevada State Democratic Party
For Immediate Release
February 24, 2020
Contact: Molly Forgey

Statement from NV Dems Chair William McCurdy II on Successful 2020 Caucus & Shifting to Primary System

Following a historic four days of in-person early voting, Nevadans gathered with friends, neighbors and co-workers on Saturday to caucus and make their voices heard in the Democratic presidential nomination process. The result was a surge in overall caucus turnout compared to last cycle and thousands of new Democratic voter registrations. As the party shifts from our historic First in the West caucus to the 2020 general election, Nevada Democrats are ready to harness the energy and enthusiasm to win this critically important battleground state for our next presidential nominee and candidates up and down the ticket.

Nevada State Democratic Party Chair William McCurdy II issued the following statement on the successful caucus and what’s next for the process:

“I’m proud of our thousands of volunteers who worked so hard to make this caucus process run as smoothly as possible and inspired by the grassroots enthusiasm of the tens of thousands of voters who turned out to make their voices heard. Our state party team worked tirelessly and put in years of planning to prepare for this caucus, and we’re so grateful to the Nevadans who gave their time and energy to help us run our most transparent and accessible caucus ever. We accomplished so much together, and showcased to the nation what a diverse electorate actually looks like. 

“With all of that said, I believe we need to start having a serious conversation ahead of next cycle about the limitations of the caucus process and the rules around it. If our goal is to bring as many Nevada Democrats as possible into the fold to select our presidential nominee, it’s time for our State Party and elected leaders to look at shifting to a primary process moving forward.”

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Nevada State Democratic Party
For Immediate Release
February 24, 2020
Contact: Molly Forgey

By The Numbers: First in the West Turnout Highlights Energized Democratic Voters, Diverse Electorate, New Participants

Following a historic four days of in-person early voting, Nevadans gathered on Saturday to make their voices heard in the Democratic presidential primary. The result was a surge in voter turnout compared to 2016 and thousands of new Democratic voter registrations. As the party shifts from our historic First in the West caucus to the 2020 general election, Nevada Democrats are ready to harness the energy and enthusiasm to win this critically important battleground state for our next presidential nominee and candidates up and down the ticket.

Here's a by-the-numbers look:

• Roughly 105,000 Nevadans total participated in their precinct caucus
• Nearly 75,000 turned out during the historic four days of in-person early voting
• 30,000 turned out on Caucus Day
• Total turnout was more than 21,000 higher than in 2016
• 35% of Nevadans who caucused were non-white according to entrance polls
• A majority of Nevadans who caucused were first-time caucus-goers

Nevada is the first Western state in the presidential primary and the only early state where the electorate reflects the full diversity of the Democratic Party and the country as a whole. As a majority-minority state, Nevada has a vibrant African American community, one of the fastest-growing AAPI communities in the nation, and nearly one-third of the state’s population is Latinx. With 14% of our workforce identifying as union members, Nevada also has the largest organized labor presence of any early state. Nevada will play a decisive role in selecting our Democratic nominee to defeat Donald Trump in 2020.

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Former Sen. Harry Reid
For Immediate Release
Sunday, February 23, 2020

Reid Statement: Nevada Should Be First in the Nation, Time to Move to Primaries

LAS VEGAS - Former Senator Harry Reid released the following statement today following Nevada’s First in the West caucus:
 
“I am so proud of the Nevada Democratic Party, its talented staff, and the thousands of grassroots volunteers who have done so much hard work over the years to build this operation. We have the best state party in the country, and that was shown again this past week after another successful caucus that featured a historic four days of early voting with more than 10,000 new voter registrations.
 
“With so much Democratic enthusiasm in Nevada, demonstrated again by the tremendous caucus turnout this year, I believe we should make the process of selecting our nominee even more accessible. We've made it easier for people to register to vote here in Nevada in recent years and now we should make it easier for people to vote in the presidential contests. That’s why I believe it’s time for the Democratic Party to move to primaries everywhere.
 
“I’m glad to have fought to make Nevada the first Western state in the Democratic nominating  process since 2008, and we have proven more than worthy of holding that prominent early state position. I firmly believe that Nevada, with our broad diversity that truly reflects the rest of the country, should not just be among the early states – we should be the first in the nation.”
 
Nevada is a majority-minority state with significant Latino, African American, and Asian American Pacific Islander communities and the largest organized labor presence of any early state.
 
Nevada has been a caucus state for decades – one reason why Senator Reid was successful in pushing our state to the front of the nomination process as the first Western state under DNC rules starting in 2008. Voter engagement in the early caucus and same-day registration has fueled a surge in Democratic voter registration in Nevada in each cycle that has helped the party carry the state in the last three presidential elections and win two U.S. Senate races and the governor’s office for the first time in decades.

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EXCERPT: Sen. Bernie Sanders Nevada Caucus Night Remarks San Antonio, Texas

[Music: "Power to the People"] [chants: Bernie, Bernie]

Thank you. Thank you, San Antonio. And let me introduce to you the next First Lady of the United States, Jane Sanders. [chants: Jane, Jane] You will be very proud of her as First Lady.

You know based on what I have seen today in Texas, we were in El Paso, we're here now, don't tell, don't tell anybody—I don't want to get them nervous. We're gonna win the Democratic primary in Texas.

And you know this is also important, the president gets very, very upset easily, so don't tell him that we're gonna beat him here in Texas.

And now I'm delighted to bring you some pretty good news. I think all of you know we won the popular vote in Iowa. We won the New Hampshire primary. And according to three networks and the AP we have now won the Nevada caucus.

[chants: Bernie, Bernie]

Let me thank the people of Nevada for their support.

In Nevada, we have just put together a multi-generational, multi-racial coalition, which is going to not only win in Nevada, it's going to sweep this country.

And in Nevada and in New Hampshire and in Iowa what we showed is that our volunteers are prepared to knock on hundreds and hundreds of thousands of doors, that no campaign has a grassroots movement like we do, which is another reason why we're gonna win this election.

In Nevada, I want to thank our rank and file union members. I want to thank Make the Road and all of the grassroots organizations that helped us win there. 

We are going to win here in Texas, we are gonna, we are going to win across the country, because the American people are sick and tired of a president who lies all of the time.

They are sick and tired of a corrupt administration.

They are sick and tired of a president who is undermining American democracy, who thinks he is
above the law, and who apparently has never read the Constitution in this country.

The American people are sick and tired of government which is based on greed, corruption and lies. They want administration which is based on the principles of justice—economic justice, social justice, racial justice and environmental justice.

continues...C-SPAN Video

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Pete for America
February 22, 2020

VIDEO: Pete Buttigieg Remarks on Nevada Caucus Night

LAS VEGAS, NV — Tonight, after exceeding expectations with a strong showing in Nevada, Pete Buttigieg delivered a forceful speech warning against nominating a candidate that represents a brand of divisive politics. Read key excerpts and a full transcript of the speech below:


Key Excerpts

I congratulate my competitors on a vigorous campaign here in Nevada, and I congratulate Senator Sanders on a strong showing today knowing that we celebrate many of the same ideals. But before we rush to nominate Senator Sanders in our one shot to take on this president, let us take a sober look at what is at stake for our party, for our values, and for those with the most to lose. [...]


We share these ideals, but I believe the best way to defeat Donald Trump and deliver for the American people is to broaden and galvanize the majority that supports us on the critical issues. Senator Sanders believes in an inflexible ideological revolution that leaves out most Democrats, not to mention most Americans. I believe we can defeat Trump and deliver for the American people by empowering the American people to make their own health care choices with Medicare for All Who Want It. Senator Sanders believes in taking away that choice, removing people from having the option of a private plan and replacing it with a public plan whether you want it or not.


I believe that we can bring an end to corporate recklessness and rebalance our economy by empowering workers, raising wages, and insisting that those who gain the most must contribute the most in order to keep the American dream going forward. But that is different from Senator Sanders' vision of capitalism as the root of all evil that would go beyond reform and reorder the economy in ways that most Democrats -- not to mention most Americans -- don't support.


I believe we need to defeat Donald Trump and turn the page on this era in our politics by establishing a tone of belonging, bringing an end to the viciousness and the bullying that is tearing apart our country...And that is a real difference from Senator Sanders' revolution with the tenor of combat and division and polarization leading to a future where whoever wins the day, nothing changes the toxic tone of our politics. I believe the only way to truly deliver any of the progressive changes that we care about is to be a nominee who actually gives a damn about the effect you are having from the top of the ticket on those critical front line House and Senate Democrats that we need to win. [...]


That is the choice in front of us. We can prioritize either ideological purity or inclusive victory. We can either call people names online or we can call them into our movement. We can either tighten a narrow and hardcore base or open the tent to a new and broad and big-hearted American coalition. This is our shot. This is our only shot to beat Donald Trump, so I am asking Americans to make sure that we get this choice right.


Now, ours is the only campaign that has beaten Senator Sanders anywhere in the country during this campaign cycle, and here's how we did it: by bringing in new voters, by running strong across age and gender and ideology, by reaching into cities and suburbs and rural communities alike. We've done it not by consolidating one extreme faction, but by growing an American majority that is united, not only over who it is we're against, but in what it is that we are for. [...]

 

Read the full speech transcript of the speech below:

Thank you. Thank you, Assemblywoman Jauregui. Thank you, Congressman Brown. Thank you to Chasten -- my love who got a little more than he bargained for on that first date. Thank you to our phenomenal leadership team, to our Nevada supporters and thank you to all of you for making this a great day for our campaign here in the Battle Born State.

To those who questioned whether a Midwestern mayor could gather a national movement around a new kind of politics, you are the answer. And to everyone who believes in what we're building, this is your night, this is your campaign. It belongs to the most talented and energetic and kind team of organizers and staff and volunteers that I have ever seen. It belongs to the nearly 1 million grassroots supporters who have gone -- yes, to Peteforamerica.com and who I'm hoping will help us raise that $13 million we need by Super Tuesday to stay competitive and make sure we succeed.

It belongs to the students and the entrepreneurs, to the veterans and the culinary workers, to the people of every religion and of no religion who agree that God does not belong to a political party in the United States. It belongs to the DREAMers -- the soñadores wondering whether this country will ever be their own. Los reconocemos, los valoramos, y ustedes pertenecen en este país que es tú país también. You belong in this country. This campaign belongs to everyone ready not only to end the era of Donald Trump, but to launch the era that must come next.

Now, that bright, bright future lies before us, but it is far from certain. It will come only if we get this nomination right. And so, we are moving on from the Battle Born State with a battle on our hands. I congratulate my competitors on a vigorous campaign here in Nevada, and I congratulate Senator Sanders on a strong showing today knowing that we celebrate many of the same ideals. But before we rush to nominate Senator Sanders in our one shot to take on this president, let us take a sober look at what is at stake for our party, for our values, and for those with the most to lose. There is so much on the line, and one thing we know for sure is that we absolutely must defeat Donald Trump and everything that he represents in November.

Now, this is important. We share these ideals, but I believe the best way to defeat Donald Trump and deliver for the American people is to broaden and galvanize the majority that supports us on the critical issues. Senator Sanders believes in an inflexible ideological revolution that leaves out most Democrats, not to mention most Americans. I believe we can defeat Trump and deliver for the American people by empowering the American people to make their own health care choices with Medicare for All Who Want It. Senator Sanders believes in taking away that choice, removing people from having the option of a private plan and replacing it with a public plan whether you want it or not. I believe that we can bring an end to corporate recklessness and rebalance our economy by empowering workers, raising wages, and insisting that those who gain the most must contribute the most in order to keep the American dream going forward. But that is different from Senator Sanders' vision of capitalism as the root of all evil that would go beyond reform and reorder the economy in ways that most Democrats -- not to mention most Americans -- don't support. I believe we need to defeat Donald Trump and turn the page on this era in our politics by establishing a tone of belonging, bringing an end to the viciousness and the bullying that is tearing apart our country. We must change what it feels like to live in the United States of America. And that is a real difference from Senator Sanders' revolution with the tenor of combat and division and polarization leading to a future where whoever wins the day, nothing changes the toxic tone of our politics. I believe the only way to truly deliver any of the progressive changes that we care about is to be a nominee who actually gives a damn about the effect you are having from the top of the ticket on those critical front line House and Senate Democrats that we need to win.

The presidency is not the only office that matters and we have got to support those frontline races because we need them to win in order to make sure that this agenda that we have is more than just words on a page. And it is different from Senator Sanders' willingness to ignore or dismiss or even attack the very Democrats that we absolutely must send to Capitol Hill -- because we must send them there to keep Nancy Pelosi as Speaker, to support judges who respect privacy and democracy and to send Mitch McConnell into retirement. Let us listen to what they are telling us and support them from the top of the ticket. It is too important.

That is the choice in front of us. We can prioritize either ideological purity or inclusive victory. We can either call people names online or we can call them into our movement. We can either tighten a narrow and hardcore base or open the tent to a new and broad and big-hearted American coalition. This is our shot. This is our only shot to beat Donald Trump, so I am asking Americans to make sure that we get this choice right.

Now, ours is the only campaign that has beaten Senator Sanders anywhere in the country during this campaign cycle, and here's how we did it: by bringing in new voters, by running strong across age and gender and ideology, by reaching into cities and suburbs and rural communities alike. We've done it not by consolidating one extreme faction, but by growing an American majority that is united, not only over who it is we're against, but in what it is that we are for.

Ours is a coalition hungry for action if we mobilize fellow Americans as allies, instead of pushing them into adversaries. We have shown that we can turn the page on our broken politics without turning off most Americans from our politics.

And that is that support of Americans from all walks of life that has fueled our campaign, from those first contributions that helped us make it to be among the 20 candidates invited to the first debate stage, to the hundreds of thousands who have joined us since, from our grassroots donors to our amazing volunteers, our tent welcomes supporters like the 16 year-old in Las Vegas not even old enough to vote, and a woman in Pahrump who hasn't been involved in politics since JFK was running.

It's the student in Orangeburg who wants greater funding for HBCUs, and the grandmother in New Hampton who is passionate about addressing our climate emergency. It is the inspiring young Latina lawmaker who survived a massacre, and made it her mission to see that Nevada enacted the kind of common sense gun reforms that we need across the United States of America.

We speak to Democrats, to Independents, and even to Republicans who can no longer look their children in the eye and explain this president, who we are now delighted to call former Republicans, and sometimes even precinct captains for this campaign. You are welcome in this effort.

So if you're ready for that future when there's no such thing as an uninsured American or an unaffordable prescription, this campaign is for you. If you believe like the mother and fast food worker that I got to march with in Charleston seeking a fair wage so she could afford her son's medication, if you believe that one job ought to be enough in this country, this campaign is for you.

If you were among the Americans I have met, from farmers in rural Iowa to Nevadans forging a clean energy future, to act as a nation on climate before it is too late, this is the campaign for you.

If you know we must act in our time so that your race has no bearing on your health, or your wealth, or your experience with law enforcement in the United States of America, this campaign is for you.

If you are for honoring our troops by seeing to it that they are never sent into endless war and never abandoned when they return, this is the campaign for you.

If you believe that our country will be a better place if we honor our teachers a little more like soldiers, and pay them a little more like doctors, this campaign is for you.

And if you believe in a democracy where every vote is counted and every voter counts, where nobody wins a political race by discriminating on the basis of race, this campaign is for you.

In other words, if you are ready to get to work to send Donald Trump packing and start healing this nation this campaign, this campaign is for you.

I feel such joy when I think about the America that we are building, one that lifts people up instead of bringing them down, one that calls for leaders to walk in the way of decency and humility, knowing that the purpose of the presidency is not the glorification of the president. It is the unification and the empowerment to the American people.

I saw that unity. I saw that empowerment. I saw that illumination beautifully symbolized right here in Nevada last summer, during what was very literally one of the darkest moments of this campaign. We were near Reno. We were in Sparks at the high school and in the middle of my remarks, the power went out completely. I was talking to a dark room, speaking as loud as I could, no microphone, trying to make myself heard. And it took a moment, but then something happened. Somebody held up the screen of their iPhone, and then another, and then another, holding up their lit phones together until the whole room was lit up. And from where I was standing, I couldn't see who was behind each light, who was young, and who was old, and who was white, and who was Black, and who was Latino and who was Asian and who was Native, and who was standing on two feet, and who was in a wheelchair. I just saw each little light, and knew that behind it was an American who saw when the lights went out and knew right away what to do about it.

It just took one person. One person started it, and then a bunch of others began to do the same, and if we can light up a high school gym like that, then we can light up a neighborhood. And if we can line up a neighborhood, then we can light up a city. If we can light up a city, we can light up this whole country. And if we light up this country, then everyone can make sure that this country we love shines as a beacon around the world once more.

So I'm asking you to join us in spreading that hope. Join us in lighting up this room, because that is the hope that will move America forward. That is the hope that makes us hopefuls when we run for office, and when we help those who do. It's the hope that makes it possible for us to stand here in a room together with a candidate for president, his husband at his side, and people from all walks of life united in a common vision for the future.

Join us in building that American life shaped by belonging. Join us in creating that American future that faces our challenges with boldness and unity, and together we will light up this country in November.

On to South Carolina, on to the nomination, and on to the White House with your help. Thank you.

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Mike Bloomberg 2020
February 22, 2020

STATEMENT FROM MIKE BLOOMBERG 2020 CAMPAIGN MANAGER KEVIN SHEEKEY ON NEVADA CAUCUS RESULTS

"The Nevada results reinforce the reality that this fragmented field is putting Bernie Sanders on pace to amass an insurmountable delegate lead. This is a candidate who just declared war on the so-called "Democratic Establishment." We are going to need Independents AND Republicans to defeat Trump – attacking your own party is no way to get started. As Mike says, if we choose a candidate who appeals to a small base – like Senator Sanders – it will be a fatal error."