Newt Gingrich wrote something on X recently that every Nevada candidate should tape to their bathroom mirror:
“Americans are exhausted with politics. They are tired of every election being an existential crisis and every disagreement becoming a battle. They want leaders who solve problems and make the system work again.”
That should hit home here. Nonpartisan voters are now the largest bloc in Nevada. More than 815,000. That’s more than the Republicans. It’s more than the Democrats.
They decide close races. And most candidates still act like they don’t exist.
The Exhausted Majority
Gingrich posted that after interviewing Adam Brandon on his Newt’s World podcast. Brandon ran FreedomWorks for more than a decade. His new book is called The Exhausted Majority: Building a Home for the Politically Homeless.
Brandon opened with a confession. When he ran a grassroots group, he told activists every fight was the most important one ever. Every election. Every issue.
It wore people out.
His point is that big problems don’t get fixed in one election. Entitlements. Energy. The debt. Those take years. Leaders need to think past the next campaign.
Who Independents Really Are
Brandon says independents over 50 mostly used to belong to a party and walked away. Under 50, they’re mostly millennials. And millennials will drive American politics for the next 20 years.
These voters like some Republican ideas. They like some Democratic ideas. And they know they’ll get stuck with the bill for today’s debt.
They aren’t just following the wind. They have values. They want Social Security and Medicare protected for their parents. They also want those programs to still be there when it’s their turn.
Ask younger voters what they want and the answers are simple. Buy a house. Get married. Save for retirement. Take a vacation once a year.
They believe if you play by the rules, you should be able to afford the American dream. Right now, a lot of them aren’t sure that’s true.
Affordability means different things to different people. For some, it’s gas. For others, it’s rent or a car payment.
And now there’s artificial intelligence. Young workers see how it could boost their careers. They also see how it could replace them.
Leaders Who Get Things Done
Here’s the part I found most interesting.
When Brandon’s team asks independents what makes a good leader, the answer is someone who will work across the aisle. Someone who gets to know the other side and finds something they can actually get done.
Gingrich knows that model. When he became Speaker, about 90 percent of the country wanted a balanced budget. That support helped deliver four balanced budgets in a row. He and Bill Clinton disagreed on plenty. They also still passed welfare reform.
Most candidates win by firing up their base. But Brandon says some swing districts are decided by independents. In those seats, you win independents first. Then you lock down your base.
You don’t have to leave your party to run that way.
Three Nevada Candidates Who Get It
Three Nevada candidates are running their campaigns this year the way Brandon describes. All three are Republicans, but they’re campaigning on the issues independents care about most.
Erica Neely is running in Assembly District 9. She put her ideas in writing in a full e-book. Her plan, The Kitchen Table Agenda, covers the issues families actually worry about.
Kelly Chapman is running in Assembly District 41. She’s focused on public safety and the economy. She’s also challenged her opponent’s plan for light rail in Las Vegas by pointing to California and Seattle where rail projects have run way over budget.
George Harris is running in Senate District 8. He wants cheaper gas through energy independence from California. He wants lower taxes. And he wants parents to have a real choice in education.
Contrast Isn’t Mudslinging
Each of them is also drawing clear differences with their opponent.
Erica’s opponent calls himself “super liberal, a true blue Democrat.” He’s running on the single issue of drug addiction and is focusing more on national issues than local ones.
Kelly’s opponent is a self-described “dues-paying member” of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). The DSA’s 2026 national platform calls for “fully abolishing the police and prison system” and amnesty for all illegal immigrants.
George’s opponent voted for tax hikes, against school choice, and for a taxpayer subsidy for movie studios known as the “Hollywood Handout.”
Some folks will call that negative campaigning. It isn’t.
Telling the truth about your opponent’s record isn’t negative. Not if it’s factual. Not if it sticks to the issues and skips personal attacks.
That’s called contrast. And voters need it. You can’t make an informed choice if you don’t know how the candidates differ.
Mud is about smearing the person. Contrast is about comparing the plans.
Real Change Requires Real Change
As Brandon put it, “You may be done with politics, but politics isn’t done with you.”
Nonpartisans don’t want another war. We want people who will do the job and treat us like adults.
Erica, Kelly and George are offering that. When you fill out your ballot, they’ve earned a serious look.
