As early as March 2020, Nevada officials decided to conduct their June primary election mostly by mail. The state sent mail-in ballots to all registered voters, while also maintaining in-person voting options. By August, the Nevada Legislature passed Assembly Bill 4, which provided for special election procedures as long as a state of emergency was in effect. Although always seen as competitive, Nevada was not expected to be the state that could determine the presidential election. As results around the country trickled in with unexpected or uncertain results in Arizona and Georgia, the outcome of the election in Nevada became very important to the final result. After the election, multiple lawsuits challenged the availability of universal vote-by-mail, alleged a lack of “meaningful observation,” and cast doubt on the reliability of the Agilis signature verification system. The Nevada Supreme Court unanimously certified the state’s presidential election results for Democrat Joe Biden, but misinformation as to the voting process spread long after the certification.
Authors: Mikaela Pyatt, Alexa Gold, Krithika Iyer