Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen is reelected in Nevada, securing battleground seat

LAS VEGAS —  Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada has won reelection, beating Republican Sam Brown in a tight but unusually quiet race for the battleground state.

The Associated Press declared Rosen the winner on Friday.

The first-term senator campaigned on abortion rights and positioned herself as a non-ideological politician, a formula that worked two years ago for the state’s senior senator, Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto, in her reelection.

Brown, a retired Army captain who moved to Nevada from Texas in 2018 and has never held elected office, tried to ride Donald Trump’s victory in the Silver State, which the AP also declared Friday.

He had Trump’s support in the Republican primary and won easily, but he was significantly outspent during the general election campaign, leaving Rosen to dominate the airwaves for months.

AP left phone and email messages seeking comment Friday from the Rosen and Brown campaigns.

Rosen, a former Las Vegas-area synagogue president and computer programmer, ran ads touting herself as an independent who doesn’t listen to “party leaders.”

She also spotlighted her work on expanding broadband internet access and helping to connect Las Vegas with Southern California via light rail.

And she hammered Brown for his opposition to abortion rights, saying he would support a national abortion ban, as Brown insisted that he respects Nevada voters’ choice decades ago to legalize abortion.

A ballot measure this year to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution passed. Voters must again approve it in 2026 to amend the constitution.

The Senate contest drew relatively little national interest for most of the campaign, a striking contrast with the presidential race as both Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris targeted the state and its six electoral votes. Conservative money flowed in during the final days as the GOP posted a strong showing in early period, but Brown was unable to fully fight back.

Analysts note that Nevada has a history of backing no-nonsense senators who deliver funding from Washington.

Brown, who was awarded a Purple Heart for his service in Afghanistan, was grievously wounded by an improvised explosive device there in 2008 and endured 30 surgeries as he recuperated. In campaign ads he repeatedly mentioned that his face remains heavily scarred from the attack.

He is also the founder of a medical company that serves veterans.

Brown previously made an unsuccessful bid in 2022 for the Republican nomination to face Cortez Masto.

All four of Nevada’s U.S. House incumbents — three Democrats and one Republican — also won reelection this year.

Riccardi and Yamat write for the Associated Press.