In a news release, the state Democratic Party made the case for Nevada to be first-in-the-nation by pointing to the state’s base of voters with varying economic and educational levels. Between 2018 and 2022, 73.5% of Nevadans above 25 years old didn’t have a college degree, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service.
The party also cited Nevada’s number of union workers, a rate of 12.4% of the population in 2023, which is above the national average of 10%, data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed. Unions wield a prominent presence in Nevada politics, particularly the Culinary Union Local 226 representing 60,000 hospitality workers.