Republican Governor Joe Lombardo broke Nevada’s veto record that he previously set two years ago. He vetoed 87 bills, including one requiring Voter ID.
In the final days of the legislative session, Democratic Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager tacked on an amendment to an existing election bill that would have required Voter ID starting with next year’s election.
In his veto message, the governor says he wholeheartedly supports voter ID, but the legislation created inconsistencies for mail ballots. While voters in person would need to show identification, someone’s ID number would only be checked on their mail ballot if their signature were to be invalid.
“Voter ID is essential for ensuring election integrity, and it should be applied consistently across all voting methods,” Lombardo said.
He also disagreed with expanding when drop boxes are available.
In other election news, Lombardo vetoed another bill by Yeager that would’ve allowed nonpartisans to request to vote in partisan races during primaries. In his veto message, he said Nevada voters already rejected open primaries through a ballot question in the last election.
