The following is an interview between The Nevada Globe and GOP candidate Alan Bigelow who is running for State Assembly in District 5.

Your bio on your campaign website says you have lived in Nevada since you were eight months old, have a career in public service, and have run for office in the past. Tell us about how these experiences have led you to running in the GOP primary for Assembly District 5. 

In the last election, I ran for city council. During that election, the incumbent and I brought out a record number of voters. I have stayed  involved in everything I could do to serve the public. I have sat on a number of boards. Through the military, I have a great deal of experience with large budgets. I’ve ran small businesses, a couple of restaurants, and I have also worked as a tradesman, a truck driver, and even as a gas station attendant. So, having been in Las Vegas nearly my entire life. and having worked in the trades, running a small business, and having served in the military and as a policeman, I wanted to continue serving the public in order to bring legislative changes and some common sense to the legislature.

Let’s talk about Assembly District 5. Assemblywoman Britney Miller has served the district for five terms. It looks like your GOP primary competitor is Kelly Quinn, who ran against Miller in 2022, but lost by less than 2,000 votes. What is your path to victory?

After redistricting, the district gained new voters. So, many of these voters haven’t heard of Miller or Quinn, but I, along with my volunteers, are making sure that all voters hear about me and my campaign. I have made over 8,000 calls to voters in the district. We also have a large number of nonpartisan voters. Approximately 10,000 nonpartisan voters compared to approximately 14,000 Democrats and 9,000 Republicans. The district is about a plus-five Democratic advantage  Yet, in 2022, Miller won by less than 2,000 votes. If you run an organized campaign like I have been doing, and turn out new voters, a Republican flip in this district is possible.

I have already established a strong name ID and have been very active politically by running for City Council, volunteering for a variety of campaigns, and I have invested my time getting to know people that have the ability and skills to get the job done. The endorsements are just starting to stack up, which is something I’m really excited about because those are the very people, like the four endorsements I just received from veterans groups, who know that I can do the job on behalf of my constituents.

Being a veteran myself, these last endorsements have a special place in my heart. I have also picked up two Sheriff endorsements. Being a former, cop, it also means a lot to me to have their support.

Has Governor Lombardo endorsed in this race yet?

I volunteered on his campaign, but the governor is working on some very specific “Tier One” races. Assembly District 5 is actually a “Tier Two” race. But we’re working alongside him and his team as much as we can. But, my primary focus, of course, is on my race and getting the job done.

What are the business demographics of your district?

There are a lot of smaller businesses and there’s a couple of larger ones that made the news last Christmas. The Lego store was targeted and robbed several times.

We must do criminal justice reform to fix this.

When the Democrats, along with Assemblywoman Miller, raised the limit of felony theft to $1200, that just opened the door to criminals. Our merchants can’t sustain these losses, so we need to fix that. We need to go into the Assembly and fix it. I would love to see the theft threshold reduced to $100. If a criminal steals more than $100 in merchandise, they could spend one night in jail. With lower limitations in place, the trend of organized theft slows and a sense of normalcy and safety in the community is established.

When you’re out talking to business owners and residents, do they even realize that Democrats raised the threshold to $1200 for felony theft?

I don’t think it has been as publicized as it should be. There’s a lot of really informed voters these days, especially with the advent of the internet. They’re able to find out a lot more information, which is good because it’s important to stay informed. But, they don’t always remember the $1,200 threshold or realize that we have a higher threshold than California’s $950 limit.

What is the main concern you’re hearing from your constituents?

Right off the top, people are scared. They’re tired of not being able to go out and walk in their neighborhoods because of the increase in crime. It is going to take a bit of work to create safer neighborhoods and safer retail spaces, and it is going to take folks being involved in the changes that we need to make. It takes providing for the first responders– police, the fire department, and everybody involved in public safety– to ensure that they have the tools and resources they need to get the job done.

I have four generations of cops in my family, so I know their battles. I know the battle of the firefighters and the EMT’s. It rolls down to a simple thing of making sure that we pay these guys decently, that we give them the equipment they need, and then we don’t backdoor them with some crazy legislation.

What are your top three campaign issues?

My top three issues are really simple. I want to make sure that we get school choice back into the legislative process, that parent’s rights are protected, and we get criminal justice reform in place to protect Nevadans and Nevada businesses. We need to make gains in the Assembly in order to protect the Governor’s veto.