RENO, Nev. (AP) 鈥� Less than a month before Election Day, 14 members of Nevada Republican Senate candidate Adam Laxalt鈥檚 family sent a letter endorsing his opponent, Democratic U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto.
鈥淲e staunchly believe that Catherine is well equipped with her own 鈥楴evada grit鈥� 鈥� a quality that she will take forward in representation of our home state for six more years across the halls of Congress,鈥� the letter states.
The letter, , does not mention Laxalt by name.
Instead, it talks of Cortez Masto鈥檚 understanding of 鈥渢he daily realities of dogged hard work鈥� and mentions her experience in public education as well as her commitment to law enforcement.
The family members also wrote that Cortez Masto鈥檚 career demonstrates she is "an authentic advocate of Nevada.鈥�
It marks the second time that some of Laxalt鈥檚 family has endorsed his opponent. During his unsuccessful gubernatorial run in 2018, a dozen family members endorsed Democrat Steve Sisolak in an That letter more explicitly criticized Laxalt, saying he 鈥渓everaged and exploited鈥� the family name throughout his campaign.
That letter prompted 22 of his family members to defending Laxalt and calling the other letter 鈥渧icious and entirely baseless.鈥�
The grandson of former U.S. Sen. and Nevada Gov. Paul Laxalt and the son of former Sen. Pete Domenici, R-New Mexico, Laxalt is seen by many as the best opportunity for Republicans to pick up a seat that could give them the majority in the Senate.
In a tweet on Wednesday afternoon, Laxalt said it is 鈥渘ot surprising鈥� that family members, most of whom he said are Democrats, are supporting Cortez Masto.
鈥淭hey think that Nevada & our country are heading in the right direction. I believe Nevadans don鈥檛 agree,鈥� he said.
The Laxalt family joins a growing list of endorsers from across the aisle, Cortez Masto spokesperson Sigalle Reshef said in a statement, citing law enforcement organizations and rural lawmakers who have endorsed the Democratic candidate.
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Stern is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Stern on Twitter:
Gabe Stern, The Associated Press
