Election, Campaign, & Political Law
Overview
Hutchison & Steffen's Election, Campaign, and Political Law Practice attorneys represent public officials, candidates for office, political parties, political action committees, social welfare organizations, and citizens groups as they navigate the complex and difficult laws and regulations that apply to campaigns and elections.
The Firm's attorneys also represent these clients in election contests, voter registration drives, voting rights, campaign finance, and ballot access disputes, as well as redistricting, constitutional, and election law litigation, and in preparing, advocating for, and defending against recalls, referendums, and initiative petitions.
The Firm's legal team consists of lifelong Nevadans with deep community roots who have advised campaigns for the state legislature, attorney general, governor, the United States Congress, the United States Senate, and President of the United States. Its attorneys include elected and appointed public officers, as well as those who served public officers in key, senior staff positions in both the legislative and executive branches of state government.
To discuss a filing deadline, a campaign finance question, or an election dispute with an election law attorney in Las Vegas or Reno, call 702.385.2500 or 775.853.8746, or contact Hutchison & Steffen online.
Understanding The Practice
What Is Election & Political Law?
Election and political law is the compliance and litigation practice surrounding candidacy, political money, ballot measures, and the conduct of public office. It is a deadline-driven field. Most of what goes wrong in a campaign goes wrong because a filing was late, a report was incomplete, or a required disclaimer was missing, not because anyone set out to break a rule. The penalties attach either way.
Two separate regimes apply in Nevada, and confusing them is a common and expensive error. Candidates for federal office register and report to the Federal Election Commission under federal law. Candidates for Nevada state, district, county, township, and city offices report to the Nevada Secretary of State under NRS Chapter 294A, and NRS 294A.100 expressly excludes federal offices from Nevada's contribution limits. A single organization, and sometimes a single donor, can sit on both sides of that line at once.
Nevada's election machinery runs on NRS Chapter 293, which sets candidate filing periods, ballot preparation, canvassing, recounts, and contests. Statewide ballot questions and the initiative and referendum process fall under NRS Chapter 295, recalls of public officers under NRS Chapter 306, and the conduct of officials under the Nevada Ethics in Government Law at NRS Chapter 281A. Several of those deadlines run from the canvass rather than from a fixed calendar date, which is why they are missed. Our article on initiatives and referendums in Nevada covers the direct democracy side.
Hutchison & Steffen is a full-service, AV-rated Nevada law firm with more than 60 attorneys and three decades of practice in the State, and its election attorneys serve candidates and committees in Las Vegas, Henderson, Summerlin, North Las Vegas, Reno, Sparks, Carson City, and statewide. That work is nonpartisan by design. Constitutional questions arising from election matters are handled with our Constitutional Law attorneys. Proceedings before state agencies go to our Administrative & Regulatory Law attorneys, and matters involving governmental bodies to our Public Entity Law attorneys.
How We Help Candidates, Committees, and Officials
Election & Political Law Services in Nevada
Candidate Filing & Campaign Formation
Ballot eligibility is decided by paperwork filed inside a short statutory window. We advise on the declaration of candidacy under NRS 293.177, residency and qualification requirements, campaign committee formation, and the bank, treasurer, and recordkeeping structure a campaign needs in place before it accepts its first contribution.
Campaign Finance Reporting & Compliance
Nevada campaigns file contribution and expense reports with the Secretary of State on a quarterly calendar, and the rules on limits, sourcing, in-kind valuation, and personal use are unforgiving. The Firm builds compliance systems, reviews reports before filing, and represents committees when the Secretary of State raises questions about one.
Ballot Access, Initiatives, Referendums & Recalls
Qualifying or challenging a measure is its own body of law. We draft and review initiative and referendum petitions under NRS Chapter 295, advise on single-subject and description-of-effect requirements, handle recall petitions under NRS Chapter 306, and litigate challenges to petitions on either side.
Election Contests & Recounts
A recount must be demanded within three working days after the canvass under NRS 293.403, and a contest filed within 14 days of the election, or within five days after a recount concludes, under NRS 293.413. The Firm handles both, including contests for offices such as Governor and state legislative seats, which are heard by the Legislature rather than by a district court.
Redistricting & Voting Rights
Redistricting combines constitutional litigation with census data, and voting rights claims reach both federal and Nevada law. The Firm's attorneys have handled redistricting and voting rights matters and draw on the Firm's constitutional and appellate practice when these questions reach the reviewing courts.
Government Ethics & Counsel to Public Officials
Knowing Which Rules Apply
Nevada and Federal Campaign Rules Compared
Which regime governs a campaign depends entirely on the office being sought, and the two sets of rules differ on limits, deadlines, and filing authority. The comparison below is a starting point, not a substitute for advice on a specific committee.
| Factor | Nevada State & Local Candidates | Federal Candidates |
|---|---|---|
| Governing Law | NRS Chapter 294A, with elections administered under NRS Chapter 293 | The Federal Election Campaign Act and the regulations issued under it |
| Filing Authority | Nevada Secretary of State | Federal Election Commission |
| Offices Covered | State, district, county, township, and city offices | United States House, United States Senate, and President |
| Contribution Limits | $5,000 per contributor for the primary and $5,000 for the general under NRS 294A.100, counted per election rather than per cycle | Per-election limits set by the Commission and indexed for inflation in each odd-numbered year |
| Reporting Schedule | Quarterly contribution and expense reports due January 15, April 15, July 15, and October 15, with dates rolling when the 15th falls on a weekend or holiday | Quarterly or monthly schedules, plus pre-election and post-election reports |
| Advertising Disclaimers | Required once more than $100 is spent on covered communications under NRS 294A.348, with separate disclosure for synthetic media under NRS 294A.3493 | Disclaimer requirements set by federal regulation, varying by medium and sponsor |
| Penalty Exposure | Civil penalties for late or incomplete reports, and a category E felony for a willful violation of the contribution limits | Civil enforcement by the Commission, with referral available for knowing and willful violations |
Protecting the Campaign
When to Involve Election Counsel
Engage election counsel before the filing window opens, before the committee accepts its first contribution, and before any advertising runs. Nevada's non-judicial candidate filing period covers roughly two weeks in March of an election year under NRS 293.177, and judicial filing runs in January. Eligibility questions that could have been resolved in advance become emergency litigation once that window closes.
Campaign finance carries the same structure. Contribution limits under NRS 294A.100 apply per election rather than per cycle, so a primary contribution and a general contribution are counted separately, and a committee treating them as one number will either leave money on the table or accept more than the statute allows. Reports are due quarterly whether or not an election is imminent, and a winning candidate keeps filing annually until the year before the next race.
This page is educational and is not legal advice. Election law changes by session and by cycle, and the figures here reflect the law as of publication. The Firm's election attorneys build the compliance record before it is examined, and represent candidates, committees, and public officials when it is.
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are Nevada's Campaign Contribution Limits?
Under NRS 294A.100, a contributor may give up to $5,000 for the primary election and up to $5,000 for the general election to a candidate for any Nevada office other than a federal office. The limits are counted per election rather than per cycle, so the two are separate. A willful violation is a category E felony. Federal candidates are expressly excluded and are governed instead by the Federal Election Commission's indexed limits.
When Are Nevada Contribution and Expense Reports Due?
Nevada runs on a quarterly calendar rather than on pre-election and post-election reports. Contribution and expense reports are due January 15, April 15, July 15, and October 15, covering the preceding quarter, and are filed together with the Secretary of State. A candidate who wins continues filing annually by January 15 until the year before the next election for that office. Due dates roll when the 15th falls on a weekend or holiday, and special elections follow a separate schedule.
How Does an Initiative Petition Qualify for the Nevada Ballot?
The Nevada Constitution requires signatures equal to 10 percent of the total votes cast statewide in the last preceding general election, and NRS 295.012 requires an equal number of signatures from each of Nevada's petition districts, which correspond to its four congressional districts. Meeting the statewide total is not enough if any single district falls short. A statutory initiative goes to the Legislature first and reaches the voters only if the Legislature does not enact it, while a constitutional initiative bypasses the Legislature but must be approved by the voters at two consecutive general elections before it takes effect.
How Long Does Someone Have to Contest a Nevada Election Result?
Under NRS 293.413, a contest must be filed with the clerk of the district court no later than 14 days after the election if no recount is demanded, or no later than five days after a recount is completed. A recount itself must be demanded within three working days after the canvass and certification of the abstract of votes, with an advance deposit of estimated costs. Contests for certain offices, including state legislators, the Governor, and justices of the Supreme Court, are heard by the Legislature rather than by a court.
When Does a Group Have to Register as a Political Action Committee in Nevada?
Registration is required with the Secretary of State before the committee engages in activity, and again annually by January 15, under NRS 294A.230. Under NRS 294A.0055, the definition reaches any group that solicits or receives contributions from others in order to support candidates or influence an election, and it also reaches businesses, corporations, and labor organizations. An entity whose primary purpose is affecting elections registers once it exceeds $1,500 in a calendar year, while an entity without that primary purpose registers once contributions received or independent expenditures made exceed $5,000.
The information on this page is educational and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship with Hutchison & Steffen. For guidance on a specific matter, contact the Firm at 702.385.2500 in Las Vegas or 775.853.8746 in Reno.