Alexis Hill

Alexis Hill (Democratic Party) is a member of the Washoe County Commission in Nevada, representing District 1. She assumed office on January 4, 2021. Her current term ends on January 1, 2029.

Hill (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Washoe County Commission to represent District 1 in Nevada. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Hill earned her undergraduate degree in political science from Texas A&M University in 2005 and her graduate degree in public administration from the University of Nevada in 2011. Her professional experience includes working in public policy and city planning. Hill is affiliated with the Sierra Arts Foundation, Truckee Meadows Tomorrow Foundation, and EDAWN Foundation.^[1]

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Washoe County Commission District 1

Incumbent Alexis Hill defeated Marsha Birkbigler in the general election for Washoe County Commission District 1 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Alexis Hill (D)	57.3	31,414
	Submit photo	Marsha Birkbigler (R)	42.7	23,411

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 54,825
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Alexis Hill advanced from the Democratic primary for Washoe County Commission District 1.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Washoe County Commission District 1

Marsha Birkbigler defeated Eugene Hoover and Melissa Fitch in the Republican primary for Washoe County Commission District 1 on June 11, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Marsha Birkbigler	50.8	3,184
		Eugene Hoover	38.3	2,397
	Submit photo	Melissa Fitch	10.9	684

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 6,265
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Hill in this election.

2020

General election

General election for Washoe County Commission District 1

Alexis Hill defeated incumbent Marsha Berkbigler in the general election for Washoe County Commission District 1 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Alexis Hill (D)	55.1	29,149
	Submit photo	Marsha Berkbigler (R)	44.9	23,738

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 52,887
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Alexis Hill advanced from the Democratic primary for Washoe County Commission District 1.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Marsha Berkbigler advanced from the Republican primary for Washoe County Commission District 1.

2024

Alexis Hill did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Video for Ballotpedia

Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released February 22, 2020

Alexis Hill completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Hill's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I grew up in Sparks and after college came back to my hometown to build up and enrich our community. I've worked in public policy and city planning for more than ten years in Sparks and Reno, and hold a graduate degree from UNR in public administration and policy. I've also worked in the private sector, including at the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival and as executive director of a fantastic non-profit for special needs children and adults, Kids & Horses. Currently, I serve as the Arts, Culture and Events Manager at the City of Reno. I also serve on the Sierra Arts Foundation, Truckee Meadows Tomorrow Foundation and EDAWN Foundation Boards.

I live in the old Southwest with my husband, Matthew Tuma, and our Boston terrier, George Washington, and have a passion for singing, riding bikes, camping and all things arts and culture.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Sustainability and Conservation - Support a Washoe County lands bill to develop a local vision of conserving our natural resources and creating smart growth opportunities. Implement regional sustainability policies.
Regional Leadership - Move the county government to step up and be a regional leader in the community on solving our most pressing issues: smart growth and social services. Support of our community's most vulnerable populations - the elderly, youth and the homeless. Look for all opportunities to support and assist our public schools.
Government Accountability - Promote a culture in which government employees prioritize customer service and transparency. Create pro-active community engagement, especially with the many boards and commissions where big decisions are made, like RTC. Improve recruitment and hiring practices so that the Washoe County workforce better reflects local community demographics, and Washoe County (and all vendors) are providing equal pay and non-discriminatory working conditions.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Quality of life and sustainability are my top two priorities for Washoe County. These are umbrella issues in which access to healthcare, affordable housing, homelessness and support for schools fall under - Washoe County's most pressing issues.

Due to COVID-19, we don't exactly know what our funding picture will be in the coming weeks, let alone months and years. These issues will likely still exist, but solutions, both those that are necessary and those that are attainable, may be quite different from what they were a month or two ago. Above all, I will look to make best decisions for long-term community, and let the short-term politics of it be what it will be.

What qualities does this office possess that makes it a unique and important part of the state government and legal system?

Washoe County is responsible for health and human services. It administers and enforces state and local laws, county code, collects taxes, assesses property, records public documents, conducts elections, issues licenses; provides parks, libraries, emergency management, human and animal services, public assistance, public health, judicial process, and planning and development.

County Commissioners also have seats on regional boards that oversee natural resources, transportation and economic development.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

I look up to Reno's Mayor, Mayor Hillary Schieve. She is a fearless leader and does an amazing job connecting with constituents.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

The book "The Good Fight" by Senator Harry Reid.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Elected officials need to have empathy, a deep understanding of public policy and need to be able to gather information and make decisions.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I am a lover of people and have always defended people who don't have a voice. I am great at finding middle grounds. I am incredibly connected to the work and follow my heart. I get along with all people and can work on problems with people that would make unlikely constituencies. I am level headed and bring substance as well as positivity to everything. I have a memorable, outgoing personality. I have always be able to make and keep friends.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

County Commissioners need to represent their district, make decisions based on foresight and always be looking to the future. Since the County oversees health and human services they need to represent their most venerable in the community (youth, seniors and the homeless).

What legacy would you like to leave?

My name means defender of the people and I would like to be remembered for being an advocate for citizens of my amazing community. I would like to leave a legacy of sustainability both with pushing conservation policies and with making decisions that will prepare Washoe County for the future. I want Washoe County to be ranked as one of the most livable Counties in the County. I want the County to be a cutting-edge, customer first organization.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The first impactful historical event that happened was 9/11/01. I was a Freshman at Texas A&M University.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

I have been working in local government for more than 10 years as a community builder, bringing people together. I was a City Planner at the City of Sparks and currently I serve as the Arts, Culture and Events Manager at the City of Reno.

What is your favorite book? Why?

It changes all of the time but right now I've really been loving "The Library Book" by Susan Orlean

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

I would love to be Leslie Knope from the "Parks & Rec" TV show.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

"One and Only" by Adele

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

I was diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer last year. It was a very scary time and I'm grateful to say that I am now cancer free!

Are there any little-known powers or responsibilities held by this office that you believe more people should be aware of?

The County can enact taxes and oversees redistricting within the County. Additionally, the State Legislature will send issues for the County to give direction on policy. I'm running for office because my opponent ensured that AB 46 wouldn't get a vote by the County Commission in 2013. This lack of support for schools and ability to make hard but good decisions lead to a more regressive tax through WC1 in 2016. Although I'm thrilled that WC1 passed and that new schools are being built and old schools are being rehabbed, this initiative was stalled by more than three years due to a lack of political will and proper planning.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for holders of this office to have previous experience in government or politics?

I believe it's very important to have a candidate that has a background in government. I have been working in government for more than 10 years and this has given me an understanding on how government should work and an understanding of best practices. I also believe that my education is an asset for this office - I have a Masters Degree in Public Administration.

What kind of skills or expertise do you believe would be the most helpful for the holders of this office to possess?

I am an "all the options" candidate and I want to bring all entities to the table to discuss solutions that will work best for our region. I have been bringing diverse constituencies together my whole career. Just what I've seen our community do to come together during COVID-19 instills within me the confidence for what our region has the potential to be and do in the next decade. I am the best person to lead in a difficult time because I am positive, solution oriented and community-driven, not ego or partisan, or politically driven.

I am running on a platform of regionalization, sustainability, and conservation and government accountability. I believe that bringing people together is the key to our community's success to tackle our major issues of access to healthcare, affordable housing, homelessness, protecting our most vulnerable populations, transportation and protecting our incredible natural assets and quality of life.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

Campaign finance information for this candidate is not yet available from OpenSecrets. That information will be published here once it is available.

External links

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Candidate

Washoe County Commission District 1

Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on April 8, 2020

[bio-1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on April 8, 2020

[1]

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Alexis Hill

Contents

Biography

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Washoe County Commission District 1

Democratic primary election

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Washoe County Commission District 1

Endorsements

2020

General election

General election for Washoe County Commission District 1

Democratic primary election

Republican primary election

2024

2020

Video for Ballotpedia

Campaign finance summary

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

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