At the State of the County, the seating chart looked less like leadership and more like a middle school lunchroom. On one end: Clara Andriola, Alexis Hill, and Mariluz Garcia. On the other: Mke Clark and Jeanne Herman. The divide wasn’t just visible — it was practically screaming for a caption.

Gosh, golly, gee wiz — who knew Commissioner Clara Andriola’s idea of “representing the people” meant doing exactly what the Washoe County Deputy District Attorney whispers in her ear? Forget listening to residents in Incline Village and Crystal Bay. Forget weighing community concerns. No, Clara’s job apparently boils down to one simple task: raise her hand when told.

Republicans in Washoe County have a problem they can’t just wave away with a slate card: two of their own are charging into the 2026 Reno mayor’s race.

On one side, you’ve got Reno Councilmember Kathleen Taylor — the same Taylor who just last year leaned heavily on Republican circles to squeak out her city council victory. Chair Bruce Parks and the Washoe County GOP rolled out the welcome mat for Taylor, putting her front and center at Republican events, think Parties in the Park. Some argue that support was the difference in her slim-margin win.

If you’ve ever tuned into a Washoe County Commission meeting, you know the drill: Commissioners Clara Andriola, Alexis Hill, and Mariluz Garcia take turns singing the praises of county staff like they’re nominating them for sainthood. Not to say Commissioners Herman and Clark don’t heap on some compliments, but they avoid gushing.

The Nevada Independent reports Washoe County Commissioner and now gubernatorial candidate Alexis Hill is floating the idea of “temporary rent caps.” Sounds comforting, right? A band-aid solution wrapped in political ribbon just in time for campaign season. But here’s the question Reno and Nevada voters should be asking: once something gets enacted in government, is it ever truly temporary?

How sad is this? A recent opinion in This Is Reno reminded us of something that Councilmember Devon Reese never seems to understand: when you sign up for public office, you don’t get to pick and choose which residents you’ll interact with.

You wanted the appointment. Then you wanted the election. And yet here we are, watching Reese decide who’s “worthy” of his attention and who gets brushed off as a nuisance. Spoiler: that’s not how democracy works.

The Reno mayoral race is starting to look crowded – or at least noisy – with three more hopefuls “exploring” the idea of running. But here’s the question: where have these would-be leaders been?

Not at the late-night City Council marathons.
Not at the Planning Commission showdowns.
Not at the Neighborhood Advisory Board meetings where real issues are hashed out.

So, Devon Reese accidentally let it slip – by listing the wrong office on an amended Nevada Secretary of State contribution and expense report – that he’s running for mayor. But while the ink is still wet on that paperwork, Reese is already using his platform to peddle feel-good talking points about “compromise,” “collaboration,” and “problem solving” in a Reno Gazette Journal op-ed on data centers.

Nevada’s state systems were down for a week. Data has been exfiltrated in a “sophisticated, ransomware-based attack.” And we thought it was a legitimate question to ask if Washoe County’s $240,000-a-year Chief Information Officer, Behzad Zamanian was in Reno when he wrote the Monday memo.

According to the Reno Gazette Journal, Zamanian works less than five days a month in Reno—spending the rest of his time in Southern California. So when Monday’s update went out detailing the crisis, it was fair to ask: Was Zamanian in Reno or phoning it in from a beachside café. Or we thought so, guess a county employee disagreed.

It’s Day 5 of Nevada’s state systems being down, and the picture just got darker. Cybersecurity officials now admit data has been exfiltrated—yes, moved outside Nevada’s network—during what they call a “sophisticated, ransomware-based attack.”

Finding out what the Nevada Police Union pays their vendors is like hunting for Jimmy Hoffa’s burial site, Genghis Khan’s tomb, and the Vatican’s secret archives—all at once. But thanks to a stealth reader with an eye for details, the mystery just cracked open.

Buried in an IRS filing on ProPublica, we find that the Nevada Police Union shelled out a cool $159,106 to Reese Ring Velto, PLLC—the firm representing them on “job-related matters.”

In 2019, after County Manager John Slaughter stepped down, Washoe County launched a taxpayer-funded “national recruitment campaign” to find his replacement. Out of all the applications—and at no small expense—the final candidates boiled down to just three: Eric Brown, Kate Thomas, and Jon Hager.

On September 10th, the Reno City Council will hold the first reading of its ordinance on Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)—the supposed superhero solution to affordable housing. A second reading will follow two weeks later.

But here’s the plot twist: without one critical safeguard—banning short-term rentals—Reno’s neighborhoods could become the next playground for an army of real estate villains.

A chilling comment made its way through Washoe County’s 311 system—a platform designed for service requests, not hate-filled threats. The message didn’t just criticize policy. It openly threatened the lives of county commissioners and anyone riding a motorcycle in Northern Nevada:

“Shame on you and you stupid white mfs I hope you guys get voted out… If I see one of those bikers I’m stepping on the gas and letting that scum fly over my car.”

This is not political speech. It is a promise of violence. And yet—where is District Attorney Chris Hicks?

The Reno Gazette-Journal’s Mark Robison recently posted a piece by political analyst Louis Jacobson of the Crystal Ball suggesting Sparks City Attorney Wes Duncan should drop his bid for Washoe County District Attorney and instead run for Nevada Attorney General. Interesting timing—and even more interesting implications.

Current DA Chris Hicks is facing what could be the toughest challenge of his career. Duncan, with a campaign war chest reportedly over $500,000, is a serious contender. Hicks, meanwhile, is stumbling through missteps, from the growing dysfunction inside his office to questionable charging decisions and opaque settlements.

The Washoe County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) has announced the launch of a comprehensive community survey designed to better understand the needs, concerns, and experiences of residents across the county. Developed in partnership with the University of Nevada, Reno, this initiative in attempting to represent a step toward strengthening community-police relationships and improving public safety services.

Oh, the optics. The City of Sparks is struggling to keep its financial head above water (and will be for the next five to seven years) —early retirements, frozen positions, belt-tightening everywhere—and yet here comes the big new idea: let’s build ourselves a brand-new City Hall at the Sparks Marina.

The justification? According to the City of Sparks their current city hall suffers from chronic maintenance problems, inadequate security, and overburdened, obsolete office and meeting spaces. Has anyone herd about this over the last few years - you know a statement, comment, article, etc.

On August 20th, the Nevada Commission on Ethics will hold a meeting to “discuss maintaining the public’s trust.” That’s adorable. Maybe they can start by actually acting on ethics complaints before they collect dust thick enough to qualify as historic artifacts.

Take the ongoing cases against Reno City Councilmember Devon Reese. Months and months of nothing — like the Commission’s motto is “Delay until politically safe.” Sound familiar? It should. They pulled the same stunt in 2024, conveniently waiting until after the election to drop findings on another Reese complaint.

Today’s Washoe County Commission meeting should be a real show. On Agenda Item 16, commissioners will decide which two of their own will sit on the shiny new study board tasked with exploring a county fire protection district. This comes courtesy of Senate Bill 319 (83rd Legislature), which mandates a look at consolidating fire services across Washoe County and the Cities of Reno and Sparks.

Sounds straightforward—until you ask who will get the seats.

Back in 2024, Commissioner Mike Clark’s attempt to direct $10,000 in discretionary funds to the Reno Toy Run blew up in spectacular fashion. The spark? A vest.

More specifically, a “swastika vest” worn by a member of the motorcycle club The Branded Few inside commission chambers — an image that Channel 4 in Reno blasted across the airwaves. Outrage followed fast, and Commissioners Mariluz Garcia and Alexis Hill jumped in to support revoking the funding.

The club, under pressure, promised to remove the symbol from their jackets. That was supposed to be the end of it.