Lackluster Turnout at Nevada Rally for U.S. Senate Candidate Running Against Trump-Backed Adam Laxalt

The Republican U.S. Senate candidate trailing Trump-endorsed Adam Laxalt (R) in Nevada had a noticeably underwhelming turnout at his rally just a week out from the June 14 primary election.

Sam Brown, a West Point graduate and Purple Heart veteran, is former Nevada Attorney General Laxalt’s top competitor ahead of the primary election, with both racing to snag a U.S. Senate seat from vulnerable Democrat Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV). The Senate-hopeful held a rally at a private business in Minden, Nevada, on Sunday, and his campaign told Breitbart News at least 250 people were in attendance.

Brown drew online criticism for the seemingly sparse crowd at his event, just a week out from election day. Polling over the past month and a half may reflect the event turnout; The most recent survey shows Laxalt leading Brown by 26 points.

Sam Brown’s very poorly attended event in Nevada (that he hyped would be “1000’s”) had a sparse showing. Yikes.

But he did promote Bush-Cheney – with signs and all.

The Liz Cheney-Sam Brown circle is complete. pic.twitter.com/nNXh95txpO

— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) June 6, 2022

Breitbart News asked the Brown campaign on Monday about former Acting Director of the United States National Intelligence Richard Grenell’s tweet showing Bush Cheney signs at the rally as well as a reaction to criticism about the event’s turnout.

“The sign is not from the Sam Brown campaign. The sign belongs to the small business facility owner. Our rally had over 250 Nevadans in attendance, and it took place in the same area where an Adam Laxalt/Ted Cruz ‘rally’ barely attracted even half that audience size,” Brown’s campaign replied.

Brown has pitched himself as an establishment outsider, despite seeking at least two — and possibly three — different offices in two states over the past seven years and has characterized his run for Senate as a grassroots campaign. According to NBC News, Brown has reportedly won three straw polls recently and outpaced Laxalt in small-dollar donations, though Laxalt doubled his contributions two months into the second quarter of the election cycle.

Though Laxalt is significantly ahead in the polls and has the backing of high-profile Republicans like Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), the Nevada U.S. Senate race will again be an opportunity to test the strength of a Trump endorsement. Ultimately, the Republican who wins the primary will need to be a galvanizing force against Cortez Masto, whose under-the-radar leadership style could prove to be a liability for Democrats as the GOP looks to overtake the House and Senate.

Disclosure: Breitbart News is represented by Cooper & Kirk, PLLC. Adam Laxalt is a partner at Cooper & Kirk. He is not actively engaged or working on any matters for Breitbart News.