Republicans Hold Registration Lead for Over a Year as Democrats Launch Million-Dollar Voter Drive in Response

Republicans have outnumbered Democrats in Nevada voter registration for over a year now, a shift that began in early 2025. This marks the first time in nearly two decades that Republicans have held the advantage in Nevada, erasing a longstanding Democratic edge. In direct response, the Democratic National Committee launched its largest-ever partisan voter registration program and the first major on-the-ground initiative of its kind in over a decade. The effort features a seven-figure national investment, including at least $2 million dedicated to Nevada for training organizers and building grassroots capacity.

This launch signals a significant strategic shift: Democrats are moving away from primary reliance on nonpartisan nonprofits and taking hands-on control of registration drives to more effectively expand and mobilize their base ahead of the 2026 midterms and beyond.

The program will target young people, voters of color, and non-college-educated individuals. In Nevada, a major emphasis is on registering new voters from the Latino community, including efforts to reach nearly half of the state's estimated 160,000 unregistered Latino voters, a demographic that could be decisive in upcoming races.

Meanwhile, nonpartisan voters remain the largest voting bloc among Nevada's more than 2.1 million active registered voters, outnumbering both major parties. Over the past four years, the relative shares of both Democrats and Republicans have declined as nonpartisan registrations have surged—driven largely by the state's automatic voter registration system, which defaults new registrants to nonpartisan status unless they choose otherwise.