As primaries take place in different states across the country, the race to the general election in Nevada is heating up. 

Democratic nominees for Governor and Senate, Gov. Steve Sisolak and Sen. Catherine Cortez Mastro, hold small leads against their Republican challengers and are losing more Hispanic voters according to a new AARP-commissioned poll made public to the Nevada Independent. 

They are votes the two relied on during their initial wins in the previous election. 

In the gubernatorial race, Sisolak leads Republican challenger, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo, 41% to 38%. While in the Senate race, Cortez Mastro holds a four point lead ahead of former Attorney General Adam Laxalt, 44% to 40%. Along with the slim leads, the two according to the new poll, are losing influence among Latino and older voters in a recent shift that has seen Hispanic voters go Republican. 

In what can be a toss up, a shift in power in Nevada could determine what party holds power in the Congress’ upper chamber. Cortez Mastro was also a former Attorney General who served for over two terms until in 2016 becoming the first Latina to win a senate seat. She looks to stay above the Trump-backed former Attorney General Laxalt. 

The poll was focused on Latinos and the older population. It was conducted by pollsters Tony Fabrizio, and Matt Hogan from Impact Research. On behalf of AARP, it was carried out from Aug. 16 to Aug. 24. They spoke to over 1,300 likely voters in Nevada, which included a group of non-Hispanic Nevada voters of over 500 and over 200 Hispanic Nevada voters. According to the findings of the poll, there has been a trend of Latino voters beginning to align more closely with Republicans. 

“We're basically seeing, nationally, Latino voters moving away from Democrats — We saw it from 2018 to 2020, and we've seen it continue from 2020 to now,” Fabrizio said in an interview with the Nevada Independent. “We're seeing the trend here in Nevada.”

According to the report, in the senate race, “among voters 50+, who will make up a majority of this year’s voters in Nevada, the Senate race is a dead heat at 44% on the full ballot, while they give Laxalt a four-point edge in a head-to-head race. Voters 50+ will be crucial in determining the winner of this contest that could decide control of the Senate.”

The poll also measured the favorability or lack thereof for the two candidates. Both were considered to be unfavorable. Sisolak is 53% unfavorable and 42% favorable. In the Senate race, Cortez Mastro’s unfavorability is at 48%. According to Fabrizio, if the race was called today, both Sisolak and Cortez Mastro would lose. He cites that undecided voters usually lean Republican and the state of the country under President Joe Biden is what has kept the race as close as it has been. 

“This is going to be a barnburner all the way to the end,” Fabrizio said. 

Democrats nationally will be watching Nevada closely as it get closer to November. A possible win for Republicans can shift the power in the Senate. Inflation, abortion, economic uncertainty, and America under Biden has shifted Latino voters more central and can possible lean right when it comes time to cast their vote. Latinos on a larger scale are uncertain of what party best represents them communally.