2022 Nevada Senate race: Catherine Cortez Masto vs. Adam Laxalt

With polls closed in Nevada, CBS News estimates the Senate race in Nevada between Cortez Masto and Laxalt is a toss up.

Laxalt, 44, served as Nevada’s attorney general for one term before unsuccessfully running for governor against Steve Sisolak in 2018, who became the first Democrat to win the governorship in two decades. A former Navy officer and veteran of the Iraq War, his name is well known in Nevada — his grandfather, Paul Laxalt, was a governor and U.S. senator for the state. But 14 of Laxalt’s family members have publicly thrown their support behind Cortez Masto.

In the 2020 election, Laxalt served as co-chairman of the former President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign in Nevada, and he has echoed Trump’s unfounded claims the election was stolen from him. In the 2022 election cycle, Laxalt has refused to say whether he would accept the results.

He’s been joined on the campaign trail by both Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, while former President Barack Obama worked to shore up support for Cortez Masto.

While Laxalt has focused his campaign messaging around the economy, attempting to link Cortez Masto and President Biden to high gas prices and record inflation, the issue of abortion has boosted Cortez Masto. But the race remains close, since there are fewer voters who are prioritizing abortion relative to economy and inflation.

Latino voters have helped propel past Democrats to victory in past elections and are expected to make up 20% of the state’s electorate in the midterms. Mr. Biden won 65% of the Latino vote and the state overall by just over 33,600 votes in 2020. Both candidates are working to turn out Latino voters this year. CBS News’ most recent polling before the election found that Cortez Masto had a double-digit lead with Latino voters over Laxalt.