The brutal Republican primary in a major swing state is finally coming to an end as voters go to the polls Tuesday to determine which candidate will face what is expected to be a tough Democratic incumbent.
Former U.S. Army Capt. Sam Brown and former Trump administration official Dr. Jeffrey Gunter traded blow after blow in the weeks leading up to the war. Nevada primary as each sought to present themselves as the true “America First” candidate in the race.
Both fought — publicly and privately — to gain support from former President Trump, a battle that Brown, an Afghanistan war veteran who suffered a catastrophic injury while deployed in 2008, ultimately won with a last minute weigh-in by the presumptive Republican presidential candidate on Sunday.
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Gunter hopes, however, that his “MAGA” messaging since launching his campaign last year, as well as his service to Trump as ambassador to Iceland, will propel him to a surprise, come-from-behind victory.
The winner will likely have the daunting task of going up against the Democratic senator. Jackie Rosen and the well-funded operation his party hopes to keep the silver state firmly blue in a year when Republicans are expected to perform well across the country.
Polling on the race has been sparse, with Gunter and Brown each touting their own internal polls as proof they hold the advantage.
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Gunter largely financed his own campaign, but Brown benefited from the support of National Republicans who see it as the best chance to overturn the siege. That support appears to be what ultimately drew Trump to his camp, making him the widely considered favorite to win the race.
Brown also has the support of popular Nevada Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo, a figure who largely stays out of the spotlight and rarely intervenes in such instances of heightened national attention.
Gunter has garnered his own set of high-profile endorsements in the race, including Reps. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., as well as former Republican congressman and gubernatorial candidate from New York, Lee Zeldin.
Brown and Gunter face a crowded primary field that includes former state Rep. Jim Marchant and a veteran Air Force pilot. Tony Grady. Rosen faces no serious opposition in his primary.
Democrats currently hold a slim 51-49 majority in the Senate, and the Nevada race is seen as a prime opportunity for Republicans, along with elections in West Virginia, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Maryland and…
