Former Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Las Vegas) and Las Vegas City Councilwoman Victoria Seaman said Tuesday’s primary results were exactly what they expected.
Based on results from the state’s early voting period and initial return from Tuesday, Berkley held a nearly 4,000-vote lead over Seaman, with both well ahead in a field of 15 candidates. Las Vegas City Councilman Cedric Crear trailed Seaman by roughly 6,000 votes and was 10,000 votes behind Berkley.
Now, the two women can focus on each other, which both said they had expected once the primary election was completed.
“A campaign is a campaign, and I’m looking forward to it,” Berkley said during an election night party at her home in Queensridge. “I’ll take the rest of the week off and then just roll up my sleeves and get started again.”
Seaman, greeting supporters during a campaign party at the Las Vegas restaurant Paymon’s, said there is a “clear and concise difference” between her and Berkley.
“I’ve been endorsed by the largest police association in Nevada, and I will be the law and order mayor,” Seaman said. “The real issue is we don’t want to end up like our neighboring cities because of far-left liberal policies. We want to make sure that public safety stays number one.”
Berkley, who spent 14 years as a Democratic congresswoman representing Las Vegas, said the mayor’s office is nonpartisan and she plans to govern in that manner. She cited her bipartisan work in Congress in getting the first Southern Nevada veteran’s hospital approved.
“George W. Bush was president, there was a Republican veterans secretary and at least one of the houses of Congress was Republican,” Berkley said. “I was able to accomplish this with a Republican administration. Why? Because people were rational and reasonable. I’m not sure that we could get that accomplished today.”
Berkley and Seaman each said they would work to settle the city’s long-running land-use dispute surrounding the defunct Badlands golf course.
“I’ve spent the last five years trying to bring everyone together to make sure that this gets settled,” Seaman said. “When I’m mayor, there will be no one else that was on the council or in the planning commission when we got into Badlands. I believe that we can get in the room and settle it.”
Berkley said her record in Congress shows she can work with both representatives of both parties.
“I’ve tried very hard to keep this nonpartisan,” Berkley said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a Republican or a Democrat. If you have a pothole that needs fixing. You want it fixed. It matters what my standard is when it comes to the issues that affect Las Vegas.”
Although she would welcome an endorsement for former President Donald Trump, Seaman said she didn’t believe it would alienate any voters.
“I’ve handled over 4,000 issues that came to my office,” she said. “I think people know that I’m there to serve the public and it’s not about party and it’s not about alienating anyone.”
