Republican Adam Laxalt leads Sen. Cathy Cortez Masto (D-NV) in the Silver State, a new poll obtained exclusively by Breitbart News ahead of its public release shows.
Laxalt, the former attorney general of Nevada, is at 47 percent in the new survey, and Cortez Masto is down at 46 percent. That 1 percent lead is inside the survey’s 4 percent margin of error.
“Adam Laxalt is in a position to defeat vulnerable Democratic incumbent Catherine Cortez Masto for U.S. Senate,” pollster Jim McLaughlin wrote in the memo. “Adam Laxalt is already edging her on the ballot and the political conditions are in his favor. Joe Biden’s failures and dreadful numbers as president are providing an even greater opportunity for Adam Laxalt to win.”
Read the memo below:
The poll is more good news for Laxalt, who has seen several GOP primary polls in recent days showing him with a commanding lead ahead of the June primary.
The survey has a sample size of 600 likely voters and was conducted from April 18 to April 20 by McLaughlin and Associates on behalf of Battle Born Values PAC. The PAC is a Super PAC supporting Laxalt, and is Laxalt’s preferred outside group, with close ties to Donald Trump Jr.’s political team.
Trump Jr. told Breitbart News that this election is critical to control of the U.S. Senate.
“This seat could decide control of the Senate. Catherine Cortez Masto is a radical Left, DC Democrat masquerading as a moderate,” Trump Jr. said. “She has voted with Chuck Schumer 91% of the time, so she’s just another liberal Biden lackey running our country off a cliff. Adam Laxalt is a total fighter who’s exactly the kind of outsider we need in the Senate to get the country back on the right track, so it’s no surprise that he’s already up in the polls.”
Some other key numbers in the polling memo include that independents in Nevada favor Laxalt by 14 points over Cortez Masto—Laxalt is at 50 percent with this key voting bloc, whereas Cortez Masto is down, at 36 percent.
What’s more, the polling memo says, a majority of Hispanics—50 percent—support Laxalt while only 38 percent support Cortez Masto. If this trend with Hispanic voters holds up come election time, as has been the case in recent elections in 2020 and 2021 where the key demographic has shifted more and more towards Republicans and away from Democrats, it would represent a crushing blow to the left on the national stage.
Both groups, independents and Hispanics, went for Democrat President Joe Biden over former President Donald Trump—a Republican—in 2020’s election in Nevada, but Biden is now underwater with both categories, which McLaughlin argues represents an opportunity for Laxalt this year to turn the tide.
Trump has endorsed Laxalt in the race, one of his earliest and strongest endorsements. Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich told Breitbart News that strong performances, like these numbers, are why the president and the “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) movement are behind Laxalt.
“President Trump’s MAGA movement is standing firmly behind Adam, because Adam has stood strongly behind President Trump,” Budowich said. “He walks the walk, delivers on his promises, and is ready to win in November.”
Cortez Masto is underwater in terms of favorability, with more voters—43 percent—disapproving of her job performance than viewing her favorably (42 percent). Intensity is also on the negative side for Cortez Masto as 32 percent view her very unfavorably and only 25 percent view her very favorably.
Biden’s ratings are seriously hurting Cortez Masto, too. The president has a clear majority in Nevada—58 percent—who disapprove of the job he is doing, while only 41 percent approve. Intensity is even stronger against Biden, with 52 percent strongly disapproving and only 19 percent strongly approving.
Among independents and Hispanics, Biden fares even worse in Nevada. A whopping 71 percent of independents disapprove of Biden while only 29 percent approve, and 66 percent of Hispanics disapprove, while only 31 percent approve.
Nearly three quarters—72 percent—say the country is on the “wrong track” under Biden and Cortez Masto, whereas just 22 percent say it is moving in the “right direction.”
“Adam is fighting against the Californication of Nevada,” Charlie Kirk, the president of Turning Point USA, told Breitbart News. “He’s tough on the border, will make sure parents have the final say in their children’s education, will bring back American energy dominance, and will always put America — and the citizens of Nevada — first.”
Disclosure: Breitbart News is represented by Cooper & Kirk, PLLC. Adam Laxalt is a partner at Cooper & Kirk. He is not actively engaged or working on any matters for Breitbart News.