Steve Sisolak

NAME: Steve Sisolak

AGE: 68

PARTY AFFILIATION: Democrat

DAY JOB: Governor of Nevada

EDUCATION: B.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (1974); M.B.A. from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (1978)

HOW LONG YOU HAVE LIVED IN NEVADA: 46 years

WRITE A BRIEF (TWO TO THREE SENTENCES) SUMMARY OF YOUR PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE THAT WOULD ENABLE YOU TO PERFORM THE DUTIES OF THIS OFFICE:

Serving as Nevada’s governor has been the honor of my lifetime.

As governor, you have to make tough choices, work across the aisle to find compromise, and always stand up for what you believe is right. There have been many difficult decisions over the last three years, and not everyone has agreed with every decision I’ve made, but I did my best every day to protect Nevadans’ lives and livelihoods during a once in a century health crisis.

Nevada is where I built my own small business, raised my two daughters as a single father, and where I married my wife Kathy. I love this state and our people, and I’m running for reelection to make their lives better.

WHAT IS YOUR TOP PRIORITY IF ELECTED?

My top issues are supporting Nevada families by keeping taxes low, creating jobs, lowering costs, strengthening our schools to make sure every student has the same opportunity to succeed, protecting reproductive freedom and building an economy that works for everyone.

We’ll get the job done by investing in housing affordability, lowering the cost of health care and high-quality child care, and keeping Nevada a low tax state. Wages are up, but we can do more to ensure every worker’s paycheck in our state matches the cost of living.

In my first term, I promised to be the Education Governor. Now, I want to build on our progress by giving our teachers another raise, lowering classroom sizes, expanding opportunities for teacher licensure to address the teacher shortage, investing in mental health and identifying pathways for universal pre-K.

We’re also going to revolutionize our workforce by making community college and other apprenticeship programs free for more Nevadans by 2025, and we’ll make it easier than ever to start a business by cutting bureaucratic red tape and licensing fees.

Through these steps, we’ll grow our economy, improve the quality of life for Nevadans, support our families, and make sure Nevada remains a welcoming state for years to come.

IN JUST A FEW SENTENCES: WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE IS THE BIGGEST PROBLEM FACING OUR STATE, AND HOW WOULD YOU FIX IT?

We need to make sure every Nevadan has access to affordable housing.

That’s why my administration launched a $500 million investment in affordable housing - the largest in state history - to lower costs, help seniors make repairs to stay in their homes and boost housing availability.

During the pandemic, greedy out-of-state speculators and corporations took advantage of low interest rates to buy property and hike up the price tag. That’s unacceptable. In my second term, I will crack down on those looking to make an extra buck by exploiting our families, expand on the Home Means Nevada Initiative to increase affordable housing, reform the eviction process to improve housing security and increase opportunities for home-ownership for middle-class Nevadans and those in underserved communities.

INFLATION AND HOUSING PRICES ARE AT RECORD HIGHS—WHAT’S YOUR PLAN TO HELP NEVADANS WHO ARE STRUGGLING FINANCIALLY?

While inflation must be addressed at the national level, I’m committed to doing everything in my power to lower costs for Nevadans by investing in essential services like affordable housing, health care, child care and free lunch for our students while strengthening our economy.

That’s why I haven’t raised a penny in new taxes on everyday Nevadans and why we’ve made historic investments to expand affordable housing, childcare, community college, lower the cost of prescription drugs by up to 80%, and provide free breakfast and lunch to all Nevada public school students this year.

In my second term, I’ll say no to any new taxes, invest in our critical services to lower costs for our families, and continue strengthening and diversifying our economy so every Nevadan has access to a high-quality, high-paying job.

ABORTION IS CURRENTLY PROTECTED UNDER STATE LAW. WOULD YOU SUPPORT AN INITIATIVE TO CHANGE THAT OR ADD RESTRICTIONS TO THE PROCEDURE?

As long as I’m Governor, I will oppose any attempts - whether at the federal or state level - to attack a Nevadan’s right to an abortion within 24 weeks of pregnancy.

During my first term, we made progress reducing barriers to abortion access and expanding contraceptives. Following the Dobbs decision, I signed an executive order protecting in-state providers and out-of-state patients who travel to Nevada for abortion care from being punished by other states. My opponent - Joe Lombardo - has said he would repeal this executive order if elected, ban contraceptives, implement mandatory waiting periods and has supported implementing an abortion ban even stricter than what was proposed at the national level. His extreme anti-abortion agenda is too dangerous for Nevada.

IN ONE SENTENCE: WHAT’S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING VOTERS SHOULD KNOW ABOUT YOU?

Nevadans should know that I’m fighting for you because I am you - I was raised in a working class family, put myself through college, raised two incredible daughters as a single father and created my own small business before being elected governor - and I will never stop fighting to move our state forward.