Appointed senator faces two challengers in November

Three candidates are vying to become the next state senator for District 10.

Fabian Donate was 24 when he was appointed to the District 10 seat in February 2021, replacing Yvanna Cancela after Cancela took a job in the administration of President Joe Biden. (Cancela later went to work as Gov. Steve Sisolak’s chief of staff.) Donate, D-Las Vegas, said his time in the Nevada Senate has proven to be a wonderful learning experience that he believes positions him as an excellent candidate for re-election.

“One of the greatest honors of my life serving in that capacity and I learned a lot,” he said.

Donate’s parents are union members. His dad is a longtime casino employee and his mom is a grocery story worker. He said his experiences growing up in Las Vegas with his parents have demonstrated to him the importance of having quality health insurance and a health system that functions efficiently. If elected he wants to make sure the state is prepared for any future health crisis that may come along.

“We weren’t really well prepared as a state because we didn’t have the infrastructure in place and the support for a pandemic response needed for COVID 19, so I want to change that,” he said.

Donate said the health care system needs more funding and investment. He also wants to work to improve job opportunities for all Nevadans.

“I want to make sure workers displaced by COVID-19 have the opportunity to return back to work and we are setting them up for the workforce needed for the future,” Donate said.

Donate easily survived a two-person primary election in June winning nearly 69 percent of the vote.

Republican challenger

Republican candidate Phil Graviet, R-Las Vegas, grew up in Las Vegas and is a retired casino industry employee. He believes Nevada’s current political leaders have failed voters.

“Everyone who goes into public office they have a masters degree, went to Harvard or Yale but, gas prices for example, used to be among the cheapest in the United States and now they are the second highest,” Graviet said. “The state legislators and Gov. (Steve) Sisolak they aren’t able to put their degrees to work … the job takes a regular person with common sense. I have to make things work with what I receive and it seems like they are unable to do that.”

He said Nevada needs to stop raising taxes and instead cut them which will help support business and job growth.

“People move into this state from other states that have really high taxes,” Graviet said. “Then they vote in politicians with that same kind of mindset. The taxes go up, rents go up and everything becomes unbearable so they pick up and move somewhere else and do the same thing.”

Libertarian challenger

Libertarian candidate Chris Cunningham has worked in the entertainment industry and is now an insurance industry consultant. He’s also an avid professional Mario Kart video game player and commentator at video game conferences. He said Nevada’s health care system needs more competition.

”I want to be able to give individuals the freedom to not only have options on the marketplace which is a little bit of a unique view as a Libertarian, but also off the marketplace,” Cunningham said. “We want to draw in the competition and new carriers to try and lower the cost of health care.”

He said Nevada needs occupational licensing reform aimed at lowering the costs of starting a new business in the state.

“The barriers to entry if you are a new business entrepreneur — Nevada is in the top two of the most burdensome (states) regulatory wise,” Cunningham said. “There are so many burdens and obstacles that people have to overcome. If you are a local business, there are going to be high licensing fees and costs and it deters a lot of small business owners from setting up here in Nevada.”

Cunningham also supports school choice and auditing the Clark County School District to see if money can be spent in a more efficient manner.