Liam Conner
Reno – Washoe County, Nevada, is a battleground county in a critical state and could hold the keys to races for Congress and, potentially, the presidency. But this cycle, one of the most important races in the state is that of city commissioner.
That commissioner would be the deciding vote on a panel that — among other responsibilities — oversees elections in Washoe. Members appoint the county’s chief elections official, set the budget for elections, and ultimately certify statewide election results.
“It is important to understand that we are in a national election, that national elections are being held at the local level,” said Democratic Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar in an interview. “And at that local level, they can completely shut down elections in the state, for the state and for the nation.”
At a time when the electoral process is under withering attack from former President Donald Trump and his turbulent MAGA followers, control of the elections has emerged as a target of his allies in places like Washoe County, despite a persistent lack of evidence of broad voter support. fraud in Washoe or any other US county
A new CBS News investigation has found that there are nearly 80 officials working in election oversight roles in seven swing states, including Nevada, who do not believe the 2020 election results, refused to certify the election, publicly supported actions taken in January 6, 2021 US Capitol riots or promoted election conspiracies.
In Washoe, the commission’s power attracted the attention of a powerful and wealthy right-wing activist named Robert Beadles, who falsely claimed that the 2020 election was fraudulent. Since 2022, he has lobbied in support of controversial voting changes introduced by other Commissioners, which include the elimination of voting machines in favor of hand counting paper ballots and the presence of the National Guard at polling places – measures that the ACLU called them “categorically illegal”.
Beadles, who claims to have made his fortune in real estate and cryptocurrency, has spent significantly in local elections for the school board, city council and state legislature. He also spent more than $100,000 on commission races, especially in support of two of the five current commissioners, Jeannie Herman and Michael Clark, both of which promoted election conspiracies or denied that Joe Biden won the election. This cycle, he aims to build a majority on the commission to advance his agenda.
“We have our two superheroes on the county commission. We have Mike Clark and Jeanne Herman.” Beadles said in a video posted to his Facebook. “However, these two votes are not enough. We need three.”
“If you want to save a county, you save the county commission, because they are the ones who have one vote that can make or break the county,” Beadles told CBS News at a local Republican event he was moderating. “People are looking at the president and the Senate and all these types and that’s great, but that person can’t necessarily make a difference. As much as one person on the county commission or city council can influence the entire council. “
In her quest for another vote on the county commission, Beadles singled out fellow Republican and current commissioner Clara Andriola for defeat in the upcoming June primary. Andriola remained against Beadles’ proposed voting changes — which contributed to his censure by the Washoe County Republican Party — where Beadles serves on the executive committee. This commission also approved a resolution in 2022, claiming that President Biden was not legitimately elected.
“It was disappointing. It was painful…but I’m a Republican, I’m still a Republican, and I will vote Republican,” Andriola said of the censure. When asked how she thinks the election will go in Washoe, Andriola told CBS News. “I think the elections were conducted in the best possible way.”
But for Beadles, Andriola is not Republican enough. Instead, he supports several other Republican candidates, including Andriola’s primary opponent, Republican Tracey Hilton-Thomas. In an interview with CBS during a campaign stop, Hilton-Thomas says she works closely with Beadles and the current Republican commissioner to draft new election resolutions.
“I believe there is interference in our elections,” Hilton-Thomas said. When asked if she believed the results of the 2020 election, she said, “I would have to say at this point, no, I don’t believe the results… they won’t show us, they won’t show us the proof, we have to just trust their word and I’m not a person who trusts people’s word.
Beadles continued to peddle false claims about voter fraud. In 2022, he counted the Washoe County Commission that “the elections are rigged…it’s treason, you’re all committing treason.” He directed much of his ire at the election of county clerk Deanna Spikula, who later resigned her position after facing an onslaught of harassment. Beadles denied any responsibility for the harassment of Spikula or other employees.
Beadles filed suit to try to block the Election Worker Protection Act, which makes it a crime to harass, threaten or intimidate poll workers. The lawsuit was rejected twice in federal court, but Beadles filed another appeal earlier this month. A public affairs officer for the Washoe County Commissions said there has been a 100% turnover of election officials in that position since 2020.
The Reno activist was promoted by Steve Bannona former top advisor to Donald Trump.
“They’re really scared of Trump, but they should be scared of about 25 (million) to 100 million little Trump 2.0s running around the country,” Beadles said on Bannon’s “War Room” podcast.
In the June 11 primary, Washoe County voters will decide whether or not to eliminate Andriola. And if Beadles can get one more vote on the commission, his allies will be in charge of certifying elections in the future.
Aguilar, Nevada’s secretary of state, says election deniers “understand the power of one county on a national level… Nevada is a battleground state, we will be part of a small group of states that determines the next president from United States”. And when you start to break the data down into the information, county by county, you start to recognize the power of Washoe.”
