EDITORIAL: Few surprises in Tuesday’s primary balloting

Nevada’s primary went off with minimal hitches and few surprises. To use a sports analogy, the regular season is upon us, and hope springs eternal for everyone involved. Yet boundless optimism will soon give way to harsh reality for many candidates.

The state’s legislative and congressional districts heavily favor Democrats thanks to gerrymandering. One of the major questions in November will be whether Republicans can avoid a supermajority in Carson City, where Democrats are one seat short in both the Senate and Assembly of reaching the two-thirds threshold. That won’t matter much if Democrat Aaron Ford defeats incumbent Republican Joe Lombardo for the governor’s office. But if Gov. Lombardo wins re-election, the partisan breakdown of the Legislature becomes vital.

Democrats represent three of the state’s four House seats, and the incumbents will be favorites given demographics and historical midterm trends. In Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District, encompassing Reno and a good portion of the state’s rural areas, incumbent Mark Amodei, a Republican, opted to retire. GOP voters Tuesday narrowly selected David Flippo as his potential replacement. Mr. Flippo, who received an endorsement from President Donald Trump, is a newcomer to the district. Democrats see an opportunity, but still face an uphill climb given that Republicans have a 7-point registration edge.

One of the more high-profile races in the primary ended with a whimper when former state Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro routed state Treasurer Zach Conine 62-34 to become the Democratic nominee for attorney general. Ms. Cannizzaro, who spent years flouting the state constitution’s separation of powers clause by serving simultaneously as a prosecutor and lawmaker, will face Republican Adriana Guzman Fralick, who had the backing of both Gov. Lombardo and President Trump.

The Clark County Commission will also have at least one new face next year. The scandal-plagued Justin Jones, a Democrat, opted not to seek another term in District F, opening the door for a number of hopefuls. On Tuesday, Assemblywoman Heidi Kasama emerged victorious in the GOP primary, while real estate professional Minja Yan bested six other candidates on the Democratic side. They’ll move on to November along with two nonpartisan candidates, including Becky Harris, former chair of the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

Finally, Nye County voters may have ended the judicial career of Michele Fiore, the Pahrump justice of the peace who was pardoned by Mr. Trump after being convicted of diverting charitable donations from a fallen police officer’s memorial. Fiore has been suspended for more than a year but sought re-election. The latest returns had her limping home, third out of four candidates.