CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO

While Democrats have leaned heavily into elevating abortion concerns, Republicans in midterm races have often been avoiding questions or taking pains to shift the topic.

Democrats believe fight for abortion rights will galvenize voters ahead of November.

Nevada voters head to the polls with some high-profile races for Senate and Governor — each of which has been swept by Democrats in recent years.

Nevada voters head to the polls with some high-profile races for Senate and Governor — each of which has been swept by Democrats in recent years.

In swingy Nevada, Democratic incumbents appear safe in their own primaries Tuesday but may face serious challenges from Republicans endorsed by former President Donald Trump this November.

Adam Laxalt is likely the frontrunner in the Republican U.S. Senate primary in Nevada. In South Carolina, former President Donald Trump has endorsed two challengers to GOP U.S. House incumbents.

Many of the nation’s most vulnerable Democrats are actively trying to distance themselves from Washington, including Cortez Masto who is nearing the end of her first six-year term. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File) (Mariam Zuhaib)NEW YORK — (AP) — Just like endangered Democrats in other states, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto is running against Washington. Many of the nation's most vulnerable Democrats are actively trying to distance themselves from Washington — and their party. The Republican groups have yet to run any attack ads against Cortez Masto, but they have placed television reserves exceeding $4.9 million to run through the end of August. Cortez Masto is focused on what she's accomplished for the people of Nevada instead of Washington dysfunction, said campaign spokesperson Josh Marcus-Blank.

Many of the nation’s most vulnerable Democrats are actively trying to distance themselves from Washington — and their party — as the midterm season enters its next phase.

Election 2022 Governor Nevada FILE - From left, North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee, Joey Gilbert, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo, former U.S. senator Dean Heller and Guy Nohra stand before a Republican primary debate for Nevada governor May 25, 2022, in Las Vegas. Primary contests in South Carolina, Nevada and Maine on Tuesday will offer the latest test of the Trump political brand. Just how well they do on Tuesday will gauge the potency of a Trump endorsement, which has delivered mixed results this midterm campaign season. His grandfather Paul Laxalt was a Nevada governor and senator. He also has the endorsement of the Nevada Republican Party.

Primary voters on Tuesday will decide the fate of two South Carolina Republicans who are clinging to their seats in the U.S. House after defying Donald Trump.

Voters in Maine, Nevada, North Dakota and South Carolina take to the polls Tuesday for midterm election primaries.

Republican candidates who have have made false or misleading claims about voting are running in Tuesday's primary to become the top election official in Nevada, a perennial presidential battleground state.

The CDC will reevaluate the need for the testing requirement every 90 days and it could be reinstated if a troubling new variant emerges.

COVID-19: CDC updates its risk assessment system for travel The CDC placed four updated destination categories to alert travelers about the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic. The CDC will reevaluate the testing requirement every 90 days and could reinstate it if a concerning variant develops. The travel industry has spoken out about the testing requirement for months, CNN reported. Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle have asked for the requirement to be done away with. According to CNN, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) said, “I’m glad CDC suspended the burdensome coronavirus testing requirement for international travelers, and I’ll continue to do all I can to support the strong recovery of our hospitality industry.”©2022 Cox Media Group

Republicans are pushing an anti-Big Tech message in the midterm campaigns as they look to tap into the resentment toward large technology companies that increasingly courses through their party.

The Senate has fallen far short in a vote toward enshrining Roe v.

Missing Native Americans FILE - Interior Secretary Deb Haaland speaks during a Tribal Nations Summit during Native American Heritage Month, in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, on Nov. 15, 2021, in Washington. She said the panel includes members with diverse experiences and backgrounds, representing communities from Alaska and Washington to Arizona, Oklahoma and Michigan. It will craft recommendations on how the government can better tackle a disproportionately high number of unsolved cases in which Native Americans and Alaska Natives have disappeared or been killed. Some members of Congress have expressed concern that work to address the crisis as required under the law isn’t on track. In the case of appointing members to the commission, federal officials are more than a year behind schedule.

U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland wants to do more than just put a bandage on a crisis that she says has been decades in the making.

For decades, Democrats have tried to motivate their voters by warning of the conservative fight to outlaw abortion.

President Joe Biden is turning to a Cold War-era law to boost production of lithium and other minerals used to power electric vehicles.

In this edition: Fundraising takeaways from the first quarter, a Democratic mess in New York, and more polls that Joe Biden probably shouldn't look at.

Senate Republicans Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., talks with reporters after a policy luncheon, Tuesday, April 5, 2022, at the Capitol in Washington. At least 10 GOP votes will be needed in the 50-50 Senate for the measure to reach the 60 votes it must have for approval. Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., want Congress to approve the pandemic bill before lawmakers leave in days for a two-week recess. The restrictions, known as Title 42, have been harder to justify as pandemic restrictions have eased. But Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said he would support a Senate COVID-19 aid bill if it included the GOP effort to retain the Trump immigration restrictions.

Republicans have blocked a Democratic attempt to begin Senate debate on a $10 billion COVID-19 compromise that is just a day old.

Ban on Russian oil is likely to further spike prices at the pump, creating a potential political headache for Democrats.

Republican missteps that include intense infighting are threatening the GOP’s path to the Senate majority.

Some are looking to a gas tax holiday to bring relief to consumers faced with skyrocketing prices.

Word of Justice Stephen Breyer's pending retirement may be lifting Democratic hopes ahead of midterm elections.

The coins are the first in the U.S. Mint's American Women Quarters Program.

WASHINGTON — (AP) — The United States Mint said Monday it has begun shipping quarters featuring the image of poet Maya Angelou, the first coins in its American Women Quarters Program. Angelou, an American author, poet and Civil Rights activist, rose to prominence with the publication of "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" in 1969. Angelou, who died in 2014 at the age of 86, was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2010 by President Barack Obama. The mint's program will issue 20 quarters over the next four years honoring women and their achievements in shaping the nation's history. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nevada, the Senate sponsor of legislation directing the mint to issue the quarters honoring women, applauded the Mint's selection of Angelou for the first coin.

Harry Reid, the former Senate majority leader and Nevada’s longest-serving member of Congress, has died at home in Henderson, Nevada.

Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has died.

Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is being remembered by Democrats as well as Republicans as a skilled dealmaker who was both strong and compassionate.

Legislative efforts to overturn the government's employer mandate are likely doomed, but a broader legal and political fight is set to rage on.

Democrats have been sounding the alarm on abortion rights in nearly every election cycle this century, including last month's stunning defeat in the Virginia governor's race. The new intensity is prompted by the high court's deliberation over a Mississippi law presenting the most serious challenge to abortion rights in decades. Democrats likely will not win on abortion if they simply recycle the arguments that Republicans are trying to roll back abortion rights, Murphy said. Murphy's guidance acknowledged the nuances of public opinion on abortion rights. Brian Sandoval supported abortion rights while in office, and in 2014 the state party removed an anti-abortion plank from its platform.

Vulnerable Democrats from Nevada to New Hampshire are promising to make abortion a centerpiece of their political strategy heading into the midterm elections.

Laxalt's $1.4 million fundraising haul through his first quarter in the race outpaced army veteran Sam Brown's by 40%. “She’s up against a pattern,” he said of Cortez Masto. But she's certain that, across the aisle, there must be people as upset with the Biden administration as she is. “There must be Democrats who are questioning what’s going on,” she said, mentioning images of the U.S.-Mexico border and the infrastructure bill under consideration, which Biden, Cortez Masto and 19 Senate Republicans support. Laxalt, the grandson of former Sen. Paul Laxalt, succeeded Cortez Masto as Nevada’s attorney general in 2015.

Republican Adam Laxalt hopes to win the race for Nevada's U.S. Senate seat by drawing stark contrast between his positions and the direction he says Democrats and their allies in Big Tech, Hollywood and the media are taking the country.

GARDNERVILLE, Nev. — (AP) — U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton told a crowd of about 4,000 Republicans that former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt plans to run for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto. “Nevada is a pretty evenly divided state, and she has voted for the Biden-Schumer agenda straight down the line,” Cotton said. In Nevada, Democrats currently hold the governorship, both U.S. Senate seats and majorities in both state legislative chambers. Schlapp claimed Trump won the state of Nevada, and Grenell said that Democrats did not adequately investigate voter fraud. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton told a crowd of about 4,000 Nevada Republicans that Adam Laxalt plans to run for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto.

Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) has repeatedly promised “big and bold” solutions to the problems ailing America. He now may be on the cusp of delivering them amid his most perilous test of leadership yet.

Las Vegas Drought versus Growth FILE - In this Feb. 9, 2005, file photo, shows the suburbs of Las Vegas from atop the Stratosphere tower looking west down Sahara Ave., towards the Spring Mountains. U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto wants to remedy the issue in Las Vegas by strengthening protections for some public lands while approving the sale of others to commercial and residential developers. From Phoenix to Boise, officials are preparing for a future both with more people and less water, seeking to balance growth and conservation. The fast-growing Las Vegas area lacks the housing supply to meet projected population growth. A 2019 University of Nevada, Las Vegas, study that Cortez Masto's legislation references projected the population in Clark County would increase 35%, to 3.1 million residents, by 2060.

Las Vegas Drought versus Growth FILE - In this Oct. 14, 2015, file photo, a riverboat glides through Lake Mead on the Colorado River at Hoover Dam near Boulder City, Nev. U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto wants to remedy the issue in Las Vegas by strengthening protections for some public lands while approving the sale of others to commercial and residential developers. From Phoenix to Boise, officials are preparing for a future both with more people and less water, seeking to balance growth and conservation. The fast-growing Las Vegas area lacks the housing supply to meet projected population growth. A 2019 University of Nevada, Las Vegas, study that Cortez Masto's legislation references projected the population in Clark County would increase 35%, to 3.1 million residents, by 2060.

Cities in the U.S. West are preparing for considerable growth in the coming decades despite a historic drought and shrinking water supplies.

LAS VEGAS — (AP) — A divide among Nevada Democrats has deepened as top Democratic officials opted to bypass the state party and set up an alternate party organization in Washoe County ahead of next year's election. Shifting the 2022 Democratic effort to the Reno-based party gives Cortez Masto, Sisolak and other incumbents a way to put distance between themselves and the new Nevada Democratic State Party leadership. The new state party chair, Judith Whitmer, decried the move as “profoundly dangerous” and said it puts Democratic incumbents at risk. Nevada Democratic officials, including U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen, criticized the statement and another state party official resigned in protest. John Lee, the mayor of North Las Vegas, announced he was leaving the Democratic Party because of the leftward shift.

The head of the Senate Republican political arm says he expects former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt to challenge Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada next year.

The head of the Senate Republican political arm says he expects former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt to challenge Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada next year. Florida Sen. Rick Scott, the chair of the National Republican Senate Committee, told The Associated Press that he has been in touch with Laxalt, whom he considers “a great candidate.” “I think Adam will run,” Scott said in a recent interview.

Vice President Kamala Harris gives her order to Germaine Turnbow, while stopping for lunch at Tacotarian, Monday March 15, 2021, in Las Vegas. President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and their spouses are opening an ambitious, cross-country tour to highlight the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief plan and its benefits. After weeks of swearing in Cabinet members, appearing alongside President Joe Biden and making stops in the Washington area, the vice president was on the road on her first big outing since taking office. As the first woman, Black person and Indian American to be elected vice president, Harris has plenty of eyes on her in her new position. ___Associated Press writer Michelle Price in Las Vegas and Kathleen Ronayne in Sacramento, Calif., contributed to this report.

The state Democratic Party in Nevada has been built up by Reid and for years has been among the strongest state Democratic parties in the country. While the state party and national Democratic Party have been working to smooth the ideological split since then, progressives have been organizing, winning key state party positions and pulling off Sanders’ 2020 win in Nevada’s presidential caucuses. In apparent anticipation of the wins, the state Democratic Party transferred $450,000 from the state party's campaign accounts to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. A former party staffer who declined to speak on the record, citing a fear of online backlash that the outgoing party staff received, said the staff resigned because the newly elected party officers and their supporters had been antagonistic toward the party and party staff and the staff did not feel comfortable working closely with them. He acknowledged that Cortez Masto asked him to consider running as the state party chair against Whitmer.

The pivotal Georgia runoff election this month was decisive in handing Democrats the majority in the Senate. Scott Applewhite)WASHINGTON – Easing off a stalemate, the Senate moved forward Tuesday with a power-sharing agreement in the evenly-split chamber after Republican leader Mitch McConnell backed off his demand that Senate Democrats preserve the procedural tool known as the filibuster. The stand-off between McConnell and new Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer had all but ground the Senate to a halt in the early days of the Democratic majority and threatened President Joe Biden's agenda. “I'm glad we're finally able to get the Senate up and running,” Schumer said Tuesday as he opened the chamber. Schumer's office said the Republican leader had no choice but to set aside his demands.

This isnt a party convention, its a Trump convention, said Rory Cooper, a Republican strategist and former congressional staffer who opposes Trump. If Republicans lose the Senate in November, we should look back at this week as a lost opportunity to introduce the country to more GOP congressional candidates. Scalise made no direct reference to the GOP's faint hopes of regaining the House majority in November's elections. Sean Parnell, a GOP challenger for a Democratic-held seat in western Pennsylvania, didnt specifically ask listeners to award Republicans House control. The inattention to the GOP's congressional efforts might have changed Wednesday when Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, delivered prime-time remarks.

In this image from video, former Georgia House Democratic leader Stacey Abrams, center, and others, speak during the second night of the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020. (Democratic National Convention via AP)Sustaining energy through four days of a political convention is never easy. On the second night of the Democratic National Convention, party leaders tried to blend its past with its future. Here are key takeaways from night two. But the 2020 Democratic convention is notable for the consistency of dire warnings about the other partys leader.

(Scott Olson/Pool via AP)NEW YORK After a night in which television struggled to keep up with the Democrats' virtual convention, networks were rewarded with the most traditional of political events a powerful speech. This will not be like any convention we have seen before, ever, CNNs Anderson Cooper said at the opening of his networks coverage. Segments spent on broadcast networks previewing speeches by Obama and Sanders seemed like time-wasters when there were other things to show. Wallace's colleague, Dana Perino, stumbled into an unfortunate word choice in an effort to convey enthusiasm for Obama's address. Four years ago, when Hillary Clinton was nominated, 25 million people tuned in to the first night.

In this combination image from video, former first lady Michelle Obama, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and former Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich speak during the first night of the Democratic National Convention on Monday, Aug. 17, 2020. But it was an opportunity for Democrats and some Republicans to rally behind Biden, the party's presidential nominee. Trump sought to undermine the Democrats' big night by hosting a political rally in Wisconsin, where Biden's party had originally planned this week's convention. The Republican president made two swing-state campaign appearances on Monday, first in Minnesota and then in Wisconsin, which was to be the location for the Democrats' convention before the coronavirus outbreak.

Protestors demonstrate outside of a burning fast food restaurant, Friday, May 29, 2020, in Minneapolis. Protests over the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in police custody Monday, broke out in Minneapolis for a third straight night. PROTESTS RAGE FOR A 3RD NIGHT IN MINNEAPOLIS Protesters torch a police station and cause damage elsewhere as violent demonstrations continued over the death of George Floyd, a handcuffed black man who died in police custody. US-CHINA FALLOUT ESCALATES The Trump administration may soon expel thousands of Chinese graduate students enrolled at U.S. universities. 4. WHO PULLED OUT OF BIDENS VEEPSTAKES Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada says that shes not interested in serving as running mate to the presumptive presidential nominee.