Democratic nominee Joe Biden defeated President Trump in Nevada, according to the Associated Press, which on Saturday morning projected that Biden had won the election and been elected the 46th president.
Nevada, a perennial Western battleground, was hotly contested yet again this cycle as Trump and Biden made an aggressive play for its six Electoral College votes. The state has turned a slight shade of blue over the past decade and a half — it has not voted Republican for president since supporting George W. Bush for reelection in 2004.
But Biden’s lead in the RealClearPolitics average of recent polls entering the final week of the campaign, just 4.6 percentage points, was too close for the former vice president to ignore or for Trump to write off.
One week before Election Day, Biden’s running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris, was stumping in Las Vegas and Reno. Six days out, Trump held one of his signature campaign rallies in Laughlin.
Nevada is a complicated state that can be difficult to poll.
Democrats have gained a foothold there thanks to the strong support of unionized casino workers and a base of ethnically diverse voters that continues to grow. In the Trump era, Democrats have also benefited from suburban voters who have defected from the Republican Party. Those factors combined for a blue sweep in the 2018 midterm elections as Democrats captured the governor’s mansion and won control of the state legislature.
However, Nevada also features pockets of Republican voters who live in exurban and rural communities. They tend to be enthusiastic Trump supporters, and their commitment to vote in 2020 helped keep the race with Biden relatively close throughout the campaign.
Another factor that kept Trump in the game? His support among Hispanics, a key bloc in Nevada, was up slightly in polls compared to the 2016 race against Democrat Hillary Clinton.
In Nevada, many voters choose to vote early, both in person and through the mail. The days leading up to Tuesday’s elections showed Democrats with robust turnout, leading to the party’s customary advantage overall statewide. But the early vote statistics also revealed that Republicans were showing up and excited. Four years ago, Clinton finished the pre-Election Day vote ahead but only won the state by 2 points.
