Flores looks to move up to state Senate

The race for Senate District 2 pits veteran Democratic Assemblyman Edgar Flores against Republican political newcomer Leo Henderson.

Both men are seeking to replace longtime Democratic Sen. Moises Denis, who is term-limited.

Flores works as an attorney in the Las Vegas Valley. He has advocated for children for many years. He was first elected to the Assembly in November 2014 and has years of service as chair on the state’s Government Affairs Committee. He said he is proud of his service as an elected official, with one highlight being enacting a law requiring schools to help Nevada kids develop a specific plan that puts them the best position possible for employment or higher education.

“We want to have kids who have control of their destiny,” Flores said. “We understand a lot of students may not be sure. They may want to go to college or trade school but it is important that we lay out, ‘If you want to go to trade school here’s how you do it. If you want to go to college, here’s how you do that.’”

He said he also helped create law expanding Miranda notifications from police to juveniles. He promises a bipartisan approach if he is elected to the Senate on improving education, promoting small business and addressing the housing crisis.

”Show up, let’s take care of the key issues put some of the political partisanship aside,” Flores said.

Henderson is running on a family values platform that emphasizes school choice, increased support of law enforcement, elections transparency and bipartisanship across party lines. He is a longtime bus driver for the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada, giving him a unique chance to hear from voters across the Las Vegas Valley about the issues they care about.

“People are worried about providing for their families,” Henderson said. “Runaway inflation. Massive grocery bills and they are worried that the inflation is bringing crime.”

Henderson said if elected he will support legislation that reduces regulations for small business. He also wants to lead reform for Nevada’s school system with implementing “educational freedom,” or school choice, he said.

“Education freedom is allowing parents to have a choice of where their children go to school,” Henderson said. “Our constituents are under-represented. Our main goal is to see that our education system is based on choice and gives families more freedom to send their children to better schools.”

Henderson wants to encourage small business growth. He said District 2 is in need of help from Carson City in addressing the problem of chronic homelessness. He also wants to pursue legislation that helps the Nevada criminal justice system do a better job of holding criminals accountable.

”I’m tired of seeing no change. Being a driver, seeing what I see every day, the homelessness … the roads. These are a lot of peoples’ concerns.”