Editor’s note: Sunlight Research Center, a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization, contributed research and data analysis for this report.

Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV) has represented Northern Nevada’s deeply conservative 2nd Congressional District since 2011, securing victory in seven election cycles.

But this cycle is different. 

For the first time since 1998, no Democrat is running for the geographically massive district, which includes Carson City, Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Pershing, Storey, Washoe and White Pine counties, as well as parts of Lincoln and Lyon counties. 

Instead, Amodei’s main challenger is Greg Kidd, a wealthy venture capitalist and registered Republican who successfully submitted 1,500 signatures to run for the seat as a nonpartisan. Kidd is largely self-funding his campaign, which he says ensures he’s not beholden to other interests and can focus on campaigning rather than finding donors.

Amodei has never faced a serious challenge, handily defeating the closest contender in each general election he's run in by double-digit percentage points. The narrowest margin between Amodei and an opponent in a general election was 2020, when Amodei defeated Democrat Patricia Ackerman by only 15.8 percentage points. 

In his most recent re-election bid in 2022, Amodei won with nearly 60 percent of the vote and a margin of 21.9 percentage points.

As of Wednesday, campaign ad data from AdImpact indicates Amodei has spent or reserved about $110,000 in general election ads so far — the first ad reservations he’s made in a general election since at least 2018. He is still lagging significantly behind Kidd, who has been on the airwaves since June, spending more than $3 million in ads.

Kidd’s campaign has acknowledged that running without the support of a major party can be an uphill battle, in part because voters often select candidates along party lines. A party apparatus typically also offers additional get-out-the-vote support and candidates can focus their efforts on voters in just one party, but he hopes to leverage a growing share of nonpartisan voters.

Nearly 38 percent of the active registered voters in the 2nd Congressional District are Republicans, with almost 25 percent of voters registered as Democrats and nearly 37 percent of voters registered as nonpartisan or with a minor party.

As part of his campaign, Kidd said he’s been on listening tours across the state and meeting with voters across the political spectrum. He said his main reason for wanting to oust Amodei is to establish better constituent services, bring new ideas to the district and represent residents from across the political spectrum.

“There’s not strong Amodei support,” Kidd said. “This is a situation where having flexibility could really make a difference for Nevada.”

Amodei, whose family tree in Nevada dates back to the 1800s, lives in Carson City and has been spotted outside mowing his lawn or shopping at the local grocery store. He has two adult daughters and ran for Congress in a special election in 2011 after serving 12 years in the state Senate and two years in the Assembly. 

An attorney by trade, Amodei served with the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General Corps from 1983 to 1987 and was the president of the Nevada Mining Association from 2007 to 2008. Born in Carson City, the only time he left the area was while on active duty and attending law school at the University of the Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento.

Amodei chaired the Republican Party until May 2011 and was former President Donald Trump’s Nevada campaign chair in 2016. He did not lead Trump’s re-election campaign in the Silver State in 2020 after being the first House Republican to support an impeachment inquiry into the then-president. Amodei later voted against impeaching Trump.

As of June, Amodei has raised $815,000, and has about $530,000 in cash on hand during the 2024 campaign cycle. His top donors this cycle include the Sierra Nevada Corporation ($14,300), a federal aerospace and defense contractor, and South Point Hotel & Casino ($13,200), which is outside the district.

Amodei said he is always willing to listen to constituents, explain his position and weigh the pros and cons of proposed legislation before voting on it.

Every election has included challengers, Amodei said, noting that there have been “no free passes” and Kidd’s campaign is part of the democratic process.

But, he said, “I'm not turning over that responsibility to someone who I don't think has lived it and earned it without a hell of a fight.”

Born and raised in Connecticut, Kidd moved to Crystal Bay about four years ago for the outdoor recreation opportunities, and believes he could make a significant difference in Nevada. He has two teenage daughters and holds a bachelor’s degree from Brown University, a master’s in business from Yale and a public policy degree from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. 

Kidd, who splits his time between Lake Tahoe and Las Vegas and snowboards, mountain bikes and climbs depending on the season, describes himself as socially liberal and fiscally conservative.

Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) has endorsed him and the Nevada State Democratic Party’s executive board has recommended him as a candidate — the strongest level of support possible for a non-Democratic candidate. But the party apparatus has not donated money to his candidacy. Despite party differences, Nevada State Democratic Party Chair Assemblywoman Daniele Monroe-Moreno (D-NV) said in a statement to The Nevada Independent that Kidd shares values with the party such as protecting a woman’s right to choose and making housing more affordable.

Kidd has focused an aggressive campaign advertising blitz on the message of “free, fair and wild,” a slogan modeled in part after New Hampshire’s “live free or die” motto. He’s also highlighted in campaign ads and stump speeches that he will support the right to an abortion, try to impose term limits and serve as a vote to break Congress’ gridlock.

“I can work with Democrats, I can work with Republicans,” Kidd said in a recent appearance at a Washoe Democrats meeting. “I may not be the ‘D’ you wanted, but I hope I’m giving you the reason why I’m in a position to work on the issues that are important to Nevadans, important to most ‘Ds’.”

Kidd told those assembled at the Washoe Democrats meeting that victory could stem from winning the Democratic vote in a high-turnout election, gaining a plurality of the nonpartisan vote and peeling off a few Republican voters. 

As the “new guy on the block,” though, he views the campaign as an investment. Even if he doesn’t win, he said, the effect of the conversations and ideas he’s been able to push on the campaign trail will likely have long-term implications.

“Do we need new legislation for banking? What should we do to clean up the blight? Just to get all those issues out there,” Kidd said. “I don't have anything against Mark, but he has not been exactly the highest energy person in Congress.”

ON THE POLICIES

Finances and the tech industry

Kidd’s net worth is estimated to be between $390 million and well over $1.1 billion, according to personal financial disclosures. 

As the co-founder and CEO of Hard Yaka, a venture capital firm, Kidd is also an angel investor and helped Jack Dorsey while Dorsey was establishing the social media company Twitter (now X) and the payment processing app Square. Kidd characterized his role with Dorsey in modest terms, describing himself as the “guy that put milk in the fridge.” He said he ultimately views himself as a team builder and facilitator, encouraging innovation. 

He has also worked at the Federal Reserve, which he said informs how he thinks about regulations.

Kidd said it’s vital to have regulations that promote competition and innovation but he doesn’t believe in regulation by enforcement through the court system.

Kidd filed his personal financial disclosure in September, two months after the deadline, but he said the level of detail he went into required additional time, and he received an extension that he requested.

That form indicates he’s made loans to at least three individuals, ranging from an estimated $15,000 to $1 million in value, which he said are to help purchase homes.

“People are much more competitive when they can make a cash purchase,” Kidd said. 

Working across the aisle

Amodei said he works across the aisle, referencing relationships he has with Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA), Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) and Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA).

“We don't vote the same way on a lot of stuff. But we work together on a lot of stuff,” Amodei said. “We’re working on things that are taking care of first responders, environmental stuff.”

Amodei said he likes to focus on policy and get away from the talking points about being a strong Democrat or Republican. He said many Democrats in Nevada are liberal on social issues, but on other issues, they tend to be more moderate, and “people feel more comfortable with” the way he works.

Kidd inherently sees his nonpartisan status as a boon to working across the aisle. But even independents tend to choose a side when they take office — independent senators Bernie Sanders and Kyrsten Sinema caucus with Democrats, for example. Pressed on who he would caucus with, Kidd did not commit to a party and said he would join colleagues on issues that he supported, such as caucusing with Democrats on women’s rights.

“I’m not doing a traditional Democratic or Republican caucus, but something like the Problem Solvers [Caucus],” he said. “That's really what this is about. Just kind of like Mark Twain, this kind of concept of American pragmatism, we come in and we check our Rs and Ds at the door.”

Economy

Kidd said his top priority would be enshrining abortion protections at the federal level. But beyond that, Kidd said he would focus on Nevada's future, which would mean increasing the state’s assets and focusing on economic development, including infrastructure.

“The top issue for me is that Nevada has to go from a hand-to-mouth state with no strategic planning to being very strategic about its future,” Kidd said. 

He said that could mean committing Nevada and the U.S. to energy independence and resilience in the future and closing the lithium loop, or keeping the processing, manufacturing and recycling of existing lithium batteries into new batteries within the state.

He added that Nevada should be the wealthiest, most prosperous state in the country and it's important to develop legislation that brings more federal dollars to the state and create a simplified regulatory environment.

For Amodei, the economy is one of the top issues, and legislation needs to focus on the massive energy costs in the Silver State, including the costs of fuel and heating oil.

“Energy’s in everything. What’s it cost to heat? What’s its cost to cool? What’s it cost for economic development?” Amodei said.

He criticized the Biden administration for mainly focusing on electric vehicles and said there are challenges with transitioning to them, such as safety risks to firefighters when lithium-ion batteries catch fire. Some of the drivers of energy costs are federal permitting, Amodei said, noting that whether someone wants to grow alfalfa, mine for lithium or use other natural resources, they need to get a permit. Due process and transparency are important, he said, adding, as is the National Environmental Policy Act, but waiting five years or longer for approval is a problem.

Abortion

Amodei said he believes in individual states' abilities to make their own choices around abortion law. 

“I wouldn't vote for anything that overturns what Nevada voters did in 1990,” Amodei said, referring to the referendum that protected abortion rights in state law. 

In Nevada, Amodei said state law already protects abortion rights through 24 weeks of pregnancy, and he respects what voters enacted. However, he said he would not be voting for Ballot Question 6, which would solidify those protections by putting them in the Nevada Constitution, arguing that state law already protects abortion rights and the ballot measure doesn’t have clear language. 

For example, Amodei said the ballot measure changes the 24-week limit to “fetal viability” and would allow qualified medical professionals — not just physicians, as in current law — to offer abortion services.

Kidd, whose ex-wife is an OB-GYN doctor, said whether it's in vitro fertilization, contraception or abortion, he dislikes that a border could change the level of health care someone can access. 

He said he would support implementing abortion protections at the federal level and doesn’t believe there should be a situation where a state can strip away someone’s rights. He said he would support Question 6, noting, “given that we have the Supreme Court … the best you can do is enshrine it at the state level until the planets align at the federal level.”

Tax policy

Kidd said he believes billionaires should be taxed at higher rates and that the tax code should be simpler, allowing individuals to file their taxes more easily. 

“I got off very well under the Trump administration,” Kidd said. “I could pay higher.”

Amodei said he would support keeping the Trump tax cuts in place. “If you're doing something that creates value, and the local, state or federal government is getting its money through different ways which encourage growth, economic activity, all that sort of stuff, great,” he said.

Both candidates said they are open to expanding child tax credits and ending taxes on tips. Amodei said he’d be open to not taxing overtime pay or Social Security benefits.

Immigration

Amodei has criticized President Joe Biden’s handling of immigration, especially regarding reports of undocumented immigrants being released within the U.S. In past interviews, he’s explained that it is “Congress’ job,” which has not been the case, he said, because immigration has become “uber-politicized.”  

On the federal level, Amodei backed “compromise” immigration legislation in 2018 that would have legalized undocumented young people known as DREAMers and given them a path to citizenship. But he has disagreed with portions of former President Barack Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, and supports “merit-based” immigration, such as the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. 

Amodei was among 30 House Republicans to join Democrats in support of the act, which gave legal status to undocumented agricultural workers.

In 2021, Amodei voted against a bill that would have provided a pathway to citizenship for DREAMers.

Kidd said there’s no reason for immigration to be a “political football.” 

His website lists support for comprehensive bipartisan immigration reform and permanent protection for DREAMers and those who received temporary protected status. He said reform could look like the right levels of legal immigration and guest workers in key sectors and stiff controls against illegal entry and exploitative situations. 

“Just figure out what the country needs and wants to do as part of a democratized negotiation that has the stakeholders in the room,” he said. “It hasn’t been since (former President Ronald) Reagan, since we had any actual meaningful, not just immigration, but visa reform.”

Yucca Mountain

Asked about a proposal to make Yucca Mountain a nuclear waste facility, Kidd said the proposal is “dead,” but there is an issue about where to store nuclear waste. If a Yucca Mountain was pitched that was sound, he said, “I’d negotiate like hell for what we get in exchange for doing it.”

Amodei has staunchly opposed storing nuclear waste about 90 miles outside of Las Vegas at Yucca Mountain, an idea revived by the Trump administration and Congress.  

Housing

Amodei said he believes in the importance of affordable housing, and the government could work to ease the permitting process or find ways to reduce burdens on developers, alongside releasing federal land for housing development.

“The good news is that Nevada is surrounded by federal land, but the bad news is that it’s not easy to get a federal land bill through Congress,” he said.

Critics have said the development of more land also requires potentially costly infrastructure and could strain or hinder public services in the case of wildfires or other natural disasters. 

Kidd said addressing the housing crisis can involve releasing new federal land, but pointed out that there is lots of vacant land available now. He said he is neutral on building up or building out but supports public-private partnerships to promote mixed-use development, and multiunit housing is needed, too.

He also said there are opportunities for low-cost guaranteed financing that could help developers feel more secure about building housing even if the real estate market experiences a boom-bust cycle.

Election policy

Amodei said he would vote against a measure to implement open primaries and ranked-choice voting (Question 3). 

“[T]his initiative has the potential to open the ballot to negative influence from opposing political parties meddling in each other's electoral process,” Amodei said in a statement about the ballot measure when it was coming before voters for the first time in 2022. 

But he supports a voter ID initiative (Question 7).

Kidd said he will be voting in favor of the open primaries and ranked-choice voting ballot measure but would not support a voter ID initiative, which he worries could disenfranchise voters.

This story was updated on 10/14/2024 at 12:36 p.m. to clarify that the Nevada State Democratic Party has recommended Kidd but not formally endorsed him.