Failed Candidate Eyes Fresh Start After Crushing Defeat
Nevada Democrats are facing a growing leadership vacuum with their two top Assembly leaders leaving office after surviving nail-biter re-election contests in 2024. Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager and Floor Majority Leader Sandra Jauregui will not seek re-election to the Assembly in 2026, they announced Monday.
To fill one of those seats, they’ve decided to turn to radical far-left failed candidate Ryan Hampton.
Hampton gained infamy among voters in Nevada’s 4th Assembly District last year after it was revealed that Hampton supported the effective legalization of deadly hard drugs – including fentanyl – by backing a controversial law in Oregon that did just that.
To make matters worse, Hampton backed an open border agenda, writing in a 2018 op-ed:
“In order to save American lives, we don’t need to stop immigrants at our border.”
These factors led to Hampton’s landslide defeat to Republican Lisa Cole, even after Democrat Speaker Steve Yeager’s PAC spent tens of thousands on scam ads to try to suppress Republican turnout.
The Carpetbagging Problem
Now, having been exposed as a radical far-leftist to the voters of District 4, Hampton seems to be hoping for a fresh start in a new district. Unfortunately for Hampton, no amount of carpetbagging can hide his record of supporting dangerous policies that would put Nevadans at risk.
The result for him in Nevada’s 9th District will be no different from his last failed campaign.
Hampton’s Dangerous Drug Position Exposed
The facts about Hampton’s record are clear. Ballot Measure 110, an Oregon statute passed three years ago, decriminalized the use and “small” possession of drugs (including heroin and fentanyl) in public spaces and provided voluntary addiction services through diverting cannabis tax revenue to addiction service providers. The measure was lauded by Hampton on X.
Oregon’s experiment was such a disaster that even liberal politicians there are trying to roll it back. Drug use exploded. Crime skyrocketed. Neighborhoods became war zones. And Hampton thought this was the right approach for Nevada.
When confronted about his support for drug legalization, Hampton condemned accusations from the Better Nevada PAC — a group tied to Lombardo that has endorsed Cole — that he supports the “effective legalization of fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine,” despite his own past struggles with opioid use disorder.
But the evidence doesn’t lie. When asked for the basis for these accusations, a PAC official referred to two posts on X by Hampton related to a (since-scaled back) Oregon measure that decriminalized possession of small amounts of hard drugs.
Defending Failed Liberal Policies
Perhaps most telling was Hampton’s defense of San Francisco’s well-documented homeless disaster. In June, 2023, Hampton defended the homelessness crisis in San Francisco in a social media thread, calling the narrative a result of “sensationalist media” and that the city is “not much that different than any other big city you’ll visit in Anytown, USA.”
Anyone who’s been to San Francisco knows this is completely divorced from reality. The city has become a cautionary tale of failed liberal policies. Drug addicts shooting up on the streets. Human waste on sidewalks. Businesses fleeing because customers don’t feel safe.
The solution to the crisis, according to Hampton, is to “dismantle the system of social oppression.” That’s radical left-wing rhetoric, not practical solutions.
The National Democratic Machine
Hampton wasn’t some local candidate trying to help his community. He was part of the national Democratic machine. Hampton was one of seven legislative candidates spotlighted this summer by the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC), which is an official arm of the national Democratic Party focused on state legislative races.
His endorsements read like a who’s who of the far left: Planned Parenthood Votes Nevada, Nevada AFL-CIO, Sierra Club, and other progressive organizations all backed his campaign.
Prior to his opioid addiction, Hampton was a staffer at the Clinton White House in the 1990’s. His nonprofit aligned with the Clinton Global Initiative’s Overdose Response Network. This explains his radical worldview – he’s part of the same Democratic establishment that thinks government is the answer to every problem.
Opposition to Election Security
When it came to basic election security, Hampton was on the wrong side again. Cole said a voter ID requirement makes “a lot of sense” to improve trust in the state’s election system, while Hampton worried that the practice could lead to voter disenfranchisement.
Most Americans support voter ID. You need an ID to buy beer, get on a plane, or pick up prescription drugs. But Hampton thought requiring ID to vote was somehow discriminatory.
The Threat to Nevada Families
If Democrats flip the seat, it could help assure they retain a supermajority in the Assembly, which they currently hold by one vote. Democrats would be able to override Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo’s veto power if they maintain a supermajority in the Assembly and also secure a supermajority in the Senate.
This isn’t just about one Assembly seat. It’s about preserving the balance of power that keeps radical legislation in check.
No amount of district shopping can hide Ryan Hampton’s radical record. Whether it’s Assembly District 4 or Assembly District 9, his positions remain the same: support for policies that have failed in Oregon and California, opposition to basic election security, and allegiance to the national Democratic machine that puts ideology ahead of common sense.
John Burke from Better Nevada PAC put it perfectly:
“Unfortunately for Hampton, no amount of carpetbagging can hide his record of supporting dangerous policies that would put Nevadans at risk. The result for him in Nevada’s 9th District will be no different from his last failed campaign.”
Nevada voters deserve better than carpetbagging politicians who think they can fool people by changing their address. They deserve representatives who will stand up for Nevada values, not import failed policies from other states.
The fight for Nevada’s future continues. And Ryan Hampton’s radical agenda has no place in it, regardless of which district he chooses to run in next.
This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
