The short version.
Nevada holds partisan primaries. To run, you file a declaration of candidacy during the state's spring filing window and pay a filing fee set by office. (Independents and minor-party candidates qualify by petition instead.)
This page covers how that works for Washoe County. It is not legal advice; for the official rules, your county clerk or registrar of voters and the Nevada Secretary of State are the sources of truth.
Washoe County by the numbers.
- In 2024, Washoe County cast 263,734 votes for president: 49.3% Democratic, 48.3% Republican.
- In 2020, Washoe County cast 252,142 votes for president: 50.8% Democratic, 46.3% Republican.
More about the electorate here: Washoe County voter data.
How to get on the ballot in Nevada.
The campaigns that win the field are the ones who start building their list of supporters and volunteers before qualifying even opens, not after. Motion51 helps you find your people as soon as you're set up.
Nevada uses partisan primaries: you run for your party's nomination in the June primary, and the winner advances to November. To get on the primary ballot you file a declaration of candidacy and pay a filing fee.
File your declaration of candidacy & pay the fee.
During the state's filing window you file a Declaration of Candidacy and pay a filing fee set by office (Nevada Rev. Stat. §293.193):
- U.S. Senate $500 · U.S. House / Governor / Supreme Court $300 · other statewide offices $200.
- District judge $150 · county office, State Senate, Assembly $100 · township offices $30.
- Offices with no salary have no fee. Pay by cash, cashier's check, or certified check; no personal checks or credit cards.
Running as an independent?
Independent and minor-party candidates skip the primary and qualify by petition instead (Nevada Rev. Stat. §293.200), appearing directly on the November ballot.
You file with your county clerk (or the registrar of voters in Clark and Washoe counties) for county and district offices, or with the Nevada Secretary of State for statewide and federal offices.
Key Nevada dates.
Nothing is open for the November 3, 2026 ballot, and Nevada has no write-in at all
Nevada gives a candidate no consolation prize. There is no write-in voting for any office in the state, the independent petition closed in June, and the ballot is frozen completely from the fourth Friday in July.
- No such thing WRITE-IN: Nevada does not permit it. NRS 293.270(2) says no person may write in the name of an additional candidate for any office. The only exception is the federal write-in absentee ballot for military and overseas voters.
- Fri Mar 13, 2026, 5:00 p.m. CLOSED. Declaration of candidacy for every county office -- CLOSED. It was a ten-day window, March 2 to 13, filed with the county clerk or registrar (NRS 293.177(1)(b)).
- Fri Jun 19, 2026, 5:00 p.m. CLOSED. Independent petition of candidacy -- CLOSED (NRS 293.200(4), the third Friday in June).
- Fri Jul 24, 2026, 5:00 p.m. CLOSED. BALLOT FROZEN (NRS 293.165(4)). After this no change is possible for any reason: if a nominee dies or is disqualified the name stays printed and, if elected, the seat is simply vacant.
2026 is a county row-office year in Nevada -- sheriff, clerk, recorder, treasurer, assessor, district attorney and public administrator are all on this ballot and next return in 2030.
2028 is a commissioner year
Only county commission seats are up in 2028: two of three in counties under 100,000, and two of five in Washoe. Every row office waits for 2030.
- Mon Mar 6 to Fri Mar 17, 2028, 5:00 p.m. COMPUTED declaration-of-candidacy window, and the only door there is: the first Monday in March to the second Friday after it (NRS 293.177(1)(b)). The $100 county filing fee can be paid only in cash, cashier's check or certified check.
- Fri Jun 16, 2028, 5:00 p.m. COMPUTED independent petition deadline, the third Friday in June (NRS 293.200(4)).
- Tue Jun 13, 2028 COMPUTED primary, the second Tuesday in June (NRS 293.175(1)).
- Fri Jul 28, 2028, 5:00 p.m. COMPUTED ballot freeze, the fourth Friday in July (NRS 293.165(4)).
- Tue Nov 7, 2028 COMPUTED general election (NRS 293.12755).
One deadline sits before all of these and catches people: under a 2025 act you must already have been registered to vote in the jurisdiction you would represent weeks BEFORE filing opens. Ask your county clerk for that date before you plan anything else.
Status as of October 18, 2026: dates that have passed are greyed out and marked CLOSED.
The 2026 dates come from the Nevada Secretary of State's candidate filing pages and NRS chapter 293, read on 2026-08-20. Nevada has published no 2028 calendar, so those dates are arithmetic from statute. Confirm with your county clerk or registrar of voters.
Washoe County at a glance.
Washoe County had an estimated 507,280 residents in July 2024, the second most populous of Nevada's 17 counties, up 4.3% since the 2020 census. Of those, 405,490 are 18 or older, the voting-age population, and 18.5% are 65 or older. It covers 6,316 square miles of land (80 people per square mile), and 22.5% of residents live outside any incorporated city or town.
The largest cities and towns are Reno (281,714) and Sparks (111,520). The American Community Survey (2020-2024) puts it at a median age of 39.0, a median household income of $88,096, 34.2% of adults 25 and older holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 59.9% of occupied homes owned by the people living in them. In 2024, 263,734 votes were cast for president, about 65.0% of the voting-age population; the Democratic ticket took 49.3% and the Republican ticket 48.3%.
The two-party margin moved from D+12.7 in 2008 to D+1.0 in 2024.
- Population (2024 estimate)
- 507,280
- Population (2020 census base)
- 486,491
- Voting-age population (18+)
- 405,490
- Residents 65 and older
- 18.5%
- People per square mile
- 80
- Living outside incorporated places
- 22.5%
- Land area
- 6,316 sq mi
- Median age
- 39.0
- Median household income
- $88,096
- Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree
- 34.2%
- Owner-occupied homes
- 59.9%
Largest cities and towns
- Reno 281,714
- Sparks 111,520
Presidential vote, 2008–2024
| Year | Democratic | Republican | Margin | Votes cast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 49.3% | 48.3% | D+1.0 | 263,734 |
| 2020 | 50.8% | 46.3% | D+4.5 | 252,142 |
| 2016 | 46.4% | 45.2% | D+1.2 | 209,282 |
| 2012 | 50.7% | 47.2% | D+3.5 | 186,917 |
| 2008 | 55.6% | 42.9% | D+12.7 | 179,175 |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 population estimates and 2024 Gazetteer; American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates; certified county presidential returns. Growth, density and turnout are simple arithmetic on those figures.
Counties next to Washoe.
Running in a district that crosses a county line? Each of these has its own guide.
Offices on the ballot.
Up in 2026 (primary June 9, general November 3):
- Governor & Lieutenant Governor (Gov. Lombardo on the ballot)
- Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer, and Controller
- U.S. House — all 4 Nevada seats
- Nevada Senate (about half of its 21 seats) and Assembly (all 42 seats)
- State Board of Regents, judicial seats, and county & local offices (vary by county)
No U.S. Senate seat is on Nevada's 2026 ballot. For the official list of Washoe County offices up this cycle, check your county clerk or registrar.
Your county election office.
In Nevada you file for county and local offices with the county clerk, or the registrar of voters in Clark and Washoe counties. This office is the source of truth for Washoe County-specific dates, district maps, and forms.
- Office
- 1001 E. Ninth Street, Building A, Room 135, Reno, NV 89512
- Phone
- (775) 328-3670
- Website
- https://www.washoecounty.gov/voters
Contact details verified 2026-06-18. If a field is wrong or out of date, your county clerk/registrar and the Nevada Secretary of State are the canonical sources.
After you file: building a field operation.
Filing is the paperwork. What starts then is the actual campaign: knocking on doors, recruiting volunteers, and identifying the voters who'll show up for you in the primary and in November.
That's what Motion51 is built for. You scope your district, recruit volunteers, cut turf, and start knocking. The app works offline for neighborhoods with bad cell coverage, and every door is logged with a timestamp.
If filing is settled and you're thinking about the field operation, our For Candidates page walks through the next steps.