Dem pick for 2018?

Nevada’s next election is a long way off on the calendar, but nearing quickly for politicians planning to run for governor.

On the Republican side, Attorney General Adam Laxalt is clearing the field: U.S. Sen. Dean Heller is going to run for re-election, and Lt. Gov. Mark Hutchison won’t seek a promotion. Although Laxalt won his 2014 race by just 4,750 votes, he’s been busy keeping his campaign promise to sue the federal government a lot.

On the Democratic side, the 2018 governor’s race will be one of the first tests of the Harry Reid machine after Reid’s retirement.

Back in 2014, the machine produced a flop: No high-profile candidates decided to run, and None of These Candidates won the primary. Will there be another flop in 2018? Here’s a few candidates the party might embrace.

He’s got a sizable war chest, he’s mid-term (in his final term) on the county board, and he’s earned a reputation as a conservative Democrat. He opposed a sales tax increase for police, before a rising crime rate convinced him more cops were needed. (He eventually voted for a tax to hire officers in connection with the NFL stadium sought by Review-Journal owner Sheldon Adelson.)

Also, there’s the curse of the commission: The last politician to rise to higher office was Lorraine Hunt-Bono, who served two terms as lieutenant governor. More often than not, commissioners don’t have much luck seeking promotions.

Capturing the majority was just a step on Ford’s master political plan, although he demurred recently when I asked him in a TV interview if he was considering a run for governor. He’ll have to show what he’s got as leader in the coming session and he’ll have to introduce himself to voters outside his Senate district if he’s to be successful. An alternative might be to run instead for Laxalt’s job as attorney general.