Midterm results: Democrat Susie Lee triumphs over April Becker in swing Nevada district
Ryan King
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Rep. Susie Lee (D-NV) successfully fended off stiff competition from Republican attorney April Becker in the closely watched Nevada congressional toss-up race.
Nevada‘s 3rd Congressional District was one of three Las Vegas-adjacent districts that Republicans had eyed with acute optimism in their quest to recapture the House. Democrats had shored up their partisan advantage in the district during the decennial line-drawing process, but the Lee-Becker showdown remained fiercely competitive nonetheless.
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Lee, who was first sworn into office in 2019, managed to outraise her Republican rival by a margin of about 3-to-1 as of early October, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Becker is a Las Vegas real estate attorney who narrowly lost her 2020 bid for state Senate.
Throughout the campaign, Becker disparaged Lee as “radical.” Lee labeled Becker “extreme” in return. National concerns such as stubborn inflation, swelling prices at the gas pump, and abortion dominated the campaign.
Becker drew distance with other national Republicans on abortion, arguing it would be “unconstitutional” for Congress to regulate the procedure. Her website describes her as “pro-life,” but she ruled out backing a federal ban on abortion.
Similar to other congressional races, Lee has hammered Becker on abortion, sensing a weakness that could scare off independent voters from her GOP competitor. Meanwhile, Becker has sought to tie Lee to President Joe Biden and national Democrats, whom she has castigated for inflation and energy price troubles gripping the nation.
Limited polling did not give a clear front-runner in the race, which was ranked a toss-up by the Cook Political Report. Republicans had seen an opening in the Battle Born State this midterm election cycle despite Democrats dominating the state legislature, governor’s office, and congressional delegation.
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In response, Democrats took a calculated risk during the decennial redistricting process to divvy up voters from the 1st Congressional District into surrounding ones in hopes of shoring up Democratic advantages.
The 3rd Congressional District moved from a Republican +5 district to a Democrat +2 district, according to FiveThirtyEight.