It is a pattern that held even in the state’s most populous county, Clark, where 14,750 Republicans turned out compared with 9,146 Democrats.
At a voting site in Henderson on Oct. 19, one person who showed up when the doors opened was still waiting to vote more than an hour later.
Nevadans’ passion was clear from interviews with The Epoch Times.
“If Kamala wins, which she can, I’ll probably cry. And if the other guy wins, I’ll probably cry,” Harris voter Ken Gordon said.
“It’s not about me. It’s about my grandkids and their kids,” Trump voter Christine Gordon, no relation to Ken, said. She was accompanied by her granddaughter, Crista Hill, who also said she voted for Trump.
Early voting wasn’t easy in some parts of sprawling Clark County, which includes everything from the synthetic paradise of the Las Vegas Strip to the mobile homes of Cal-Nev-Ari, named for its location near the convergence of California, Nevada, and Arizona.
Further south is Laughlin, Nevada, which has its own mini-strip along the Colorado River, a bridge length away from Arizona. The town’s public library, which will host voting from Oct. 30 to Nov. 1 and on Election Day, was also closed.
West of Las Vegas, on a bridge overlooking the Hoover Dam, the start of early voting on Oct. 19 seemed a world away. Tourists from across the country and the world had come to marvel at the massive structure, which created Lake Mead, a vast reservoir in the Mojave Desert.
Peter and Karina Mechel were visiting from Nuremberg, Germany. Like people all over the planet, they were very aware of the United States’ upcoming presidential election.
“I hope the American people think about facts,” Peter Mechel said when asked about the start of early voting in Nevada.
They said they were struck by the scale of obesity in America.
“We were at a McDonald’s, and there [was] no water to drink!” Karina Mechel said.
Peter Mechel shared skepticism about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s pledge to “Make America Healthy Again” as part of a possible future Trump administration.
“German newspapers’ [stories] about Mr. Kennedy are not so positive,” he said.
As of Oct. 20, a narrow plurality of accepted ballots had come in from Republicans, with 13,418 compared to 13,050 for Democrats. Another 9,226 came from the “Other” category.
While early in-person voting isn’t the only option available to Nevadans, its start was hard to miss at the Galleria, a mall in Henderson.
Past the sliding doors, on the other side of a Kohl’s, hundreds of Nevadans had lined up to cast their ballots in a block of voting booths.
From above, the mass of cubicles looked like a beehive, swarming with an engaged and, in some cases, enraged public.
Passion at the Galleria
Outside the Galleria, Ken Gordon was fired up for Harris, and against Trump.A retired government worker, he believes that if Trump wins, “this will be the last election, the last free and fair election.”
The Tesla owner is no fan of Elon Musk, although that wasn’t always the case.
“I was [a Musk fan] when I bought it in 2023. But if my car wasn’t so underwater, I’d get rid of it,” he said of his automobile. Yet he lauded the Trump-supporting billionaire’s contributions to green energy.
“I’m torn,” Ken Gordon said.
The military veteran praised Harris’s tenure as attorney general of California, saying she was tough on criminals.
“She’s gonna get stuff done,” he said.
Back inside the mall, Trump voters Richard and Denise, who didn’t want to give their last names, processed along the zigzagging line.
Denise, who said she works in a professional field, said she and her husband came out to vote because of “the living hell of the last four years.”
“When Trump was in office, we could save,” she said, noting that she and her spouse are supporting three kids. “Since Biden and Kamala took office, we can’t save a single dime.”
Richard, who said he works in law enforcement, voiced worries about U.S. foreign relations under the current administration.
“This is worse than the Cold War,” he said.
Richard scoffed at the idea that Trump has been excessively chummy with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese leader Xi Jinping, or others at the helm of U.S. rivals.
“They’re not best friends. What it is, is communication,” he said.
Jill Kunkel was still in Kohl’s after casting her ballot for Harris.
“I shop here all the time,” the retiree said.
She was excited to vote for the vice president.
“We both can’t wait for him [Trump] to go away,” she said of herself and her husband, Jason, who had also come out to vote early. They arrived from Florida two months ago.
Christine Gordon and her granddaughter, Hill, avoided a long wait at the Galleria by dropping off their absentee ballots in a drop box.
Gordon explained that she once supported Obama because she was encouraged to “‘vote for color.’” That’s in the past.
She believes Obama did “nothing for Chicago” and places like it after taking office.
Their family used to live in California. Rising costs in the Golden State lured them to Nevada.
Hill was wearing a Las Vegas Raiders shirt. She admitted that she hadn’t supported the franchise when they were in California, her old home.
Fear for Democracy
The first day of early voting was a little more sedate in the parking lot of a northwest Las Vegas gym, where a white tent had been set up.Harris voter Shonna Wolkov said she worries about the possibility that Americans may favor Republicans over Democrats on bread-and-butter issues this cycle.
The first thing she mentioned when asked why she voted early was “democracy.”
Not far away, in North Las Vegas, Harris supporters were gathering outside Cheyenne High School. Former President Barack Obama was slated to campaign there for Harris, one of multiple appearances in the state that day. He’s spoken at the school at least three times previously, in 2022, 2016, and 2007.
When asked about their choice, Harris voters have often directed the conversation to the man who won the presidency in 2016.
While Harris—and Obama—have turned out crowds, those who gathered outside Cheyenne had Trump, and Republicans, front of mind.
“I can’t stand [Trump],” said Charles Johnson. Citing COVID-19 pandemic policies, Johnson said he believes Trump’s policies could have been fatal to him.
Two men in “White Dudes for Harris” hats shared similar concerns.
“He is dangerous,” Lance said of Trump.
Jack hopes former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) might join a possible future Harris cabinet, to signal a rejection of the Trump-era GOP.
The two men didn’t want to share their real names, saying they worked for a conservative-run firm.
Back at the white tent in northwest Vegas, asked about his top concerns for his seven grandchildren, Trump voter Arthur paused and reflected. “Democrats,” he finally said.
Arthur told The Epoch Times that his biggest motivation to cast an early ballot was immigration and, in his words, being “a procrastinator.”
