Nevada Republicans prepare to choose a candidate to take on Jacky Rosen in critical Senate race

RENO, Nev. (AP) — Retired Army Capt. Sam Brown hopes a late endorsement from former President Donald Trump will help carry him to victory in the state’s GOP Senate primary on Tuesday and give him the momentum he needs to win a general election race that Republicans see as one of their best chances to pick up a seat in the closely divided chamber.

The winner of Tuesday’s GOP Senate primary will square off with incumbent Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen in a fierce swing-state Senate race.

Rosen, a first-term moderate defending her seat in a state that also could figure heavily in the presidential race, is one of Republicans’ top targets in 2024. Democrats are defending far more Senate seats than Republicans this year, including open swing-state seats in Michigan and Arizona and seats held by incumbent Democrats in the competitive states of Wisconsin and Pennsylvania as well as Nevada.

Republicans also hope to win seats currently held by Democrats in reliably red Montana, Ohio and West Virginia.

Brown, a Purple Heart recipient who was wounded while serving in Afghanistan, has long been considered the GOP front-runner in a crowded primary field since he announced he was running last summer, less than a year after he lost his bid to challenge Nevada’s other Democratic senator in the western battleground state.

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