Mesquite City Councilor A Candidate For Assembly

By AMY DAVIS

Moapa Valley Progress

Mesquite resident and City Council Member Annie Black is ready to be the change she wants to see in the world. Black has filed as a candidate for Nevada State Assembly District 19 which includes Virgin Valley and a large part of Overton, as well as Boulder City and a portion of Henderson. In filing as a candidate for this seat, Black prepares to take on the incumbent Chris Edwards in the Republican primary election which will be held by mail only on June 9.

The primary election is a particularly high-stakes affair in this race. No Democrats have filed to run for the seat in November General Election. So the Republican who is elected in the Primary will automatically win the seat.

Black said she is well-suited for the District 19 seat because she has been a rural dweller, but has also lived in the more urban areas of the district. “I actually live in and represent our rural community,” Black said. “Edwards lives in an urban area. I have lived, worked and shopped in both Henderson and in Mesquite. So I understand the different needs of both parts of District 19.”

Doing business as a real estate professional in rural Mesquite, Black says that she understands the needs of business owners. “I’m a self-employed businesswoman, so I understand first-hand the pain-in-the-neck problems government creates for people who are trying to create jobs,” Black said. “My family has spent decades in the casino and real estate development industries, especially in Mesquite. So I understand exactly how vital both are to our economic health and job creation.”

Black has a special sympathy and concern for small business owners during this time of crisis that stems from the COVID-19 pandemic. She recently wrote an Op-Ed article that called out Governor Steve Sisolak and asks for a special session of legislation to be held to address issues unique to this unprecedented situation.

“With his decision to completely shut down Nevada’s entire gaming industry – putting over 200,000 casino employees out of work, as well as most of the state’s other businesses – Gov. Steve Sisolak has thrown us into a very deep hole that will take a very long time to climb out of,” Black wrote. “These workers and businesses can’t wait until next February when the Nevada Legislature will reconvene for its regular session.”

Black wants the Governor to call a special session of the legislature in order to pass and implement measures to lessen the economic damage. In this way, Nevadans might hope to recover as “quickly as humanly possible.”

Individuals can read the letter in its entirety on Black’s campaign website: ElectAnnieBlack.com.
“We need to get the government out of the way of businesses and Nevada workers who are going to have to rebuild our economy from the ground up thanks to the Sisolak Shutdown,” Black said.

Black comes from a large family with nine siblings. “I understand the challenges of playing in the sandbox with other kids without getting bullied,” she said. “Those are skills that’ll come in handy in the Legislature.”

In addition Black is a mother. “So I understand the challenges, fears, sleepless nights, stress, hopes and dreams of parents and I will vote accordingly,” she said.
Black also refers to herself as “an unhappy taxpayer.”

“I believe taxes should only be high enough to pay for essential and constitutional government,” she said.
Black also has broad experience as a grass roots political organizer. She has served as president of the Mesquite Republican Women’s Club. “I fully appreciate how too many elected officials often ignore grassroots activists,” Black said. “Tha tis something I will never do.”

Finally, the past two years as an elected member of the Mesquite City Council have given her valuable knowledge and skills. “I’ve been an elected official since 2018,” she said, “so I know how the system works…and how it doesn’t.”

As a member of the Nevada Assembly, Black said she would consider it her duty to protect the individual, constitutional rights of Nevadans. “It will be to protect the parental rights of families, to protect the Second Amendment rights of gun owners, to eliminate unnecessary government restrictions and fees on the right to own and operate a business, and to protect the wallets and bank accounts of taxpayers,” she said.