Barbara Cegavske

Barbara K. Cegavske

Republican Party

Prior offices

Nevada State Assembly

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Nevada State Senate District 8

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Nevada Secretary of State

Successor: Cisco Aguilar

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Personal

Religion

Christian: Methodist

Profession

Consultant

Contact

Campaign Facebook

Barbara K. Cegavske (Republican Party) was the Nevada Secretary of State. She assumed office in 2015. She left office on January 2, 2023.

Cegavske (Republican Party) ran for re-election for Nevada Secretary of State. She won in the general election on November 6, 2018.

Cegavske was a Republican member of the Nevada State Senate, representing District 8 from 2003 to 2014. She was first elected to the chamber in 2002. She served as minority whip from 2009 to 2010, and assistant minority leader from 2011 to 2012.

Cegavske served in the Nevada State Assembly from 1997 to 2001. She served as assistant minority whip in 1997.

Biography

Cegavske was born and raised in Minnesota and has lived in Nevada for over 40 years. She first entered politics in 1996 with her election to the Nevada State Assembly. Prior to serving as secretary of state, Cegavske also served in the Nevada State Senate. In the private sector, she co-owned a 7-Eleven franchise with her husband, Tim, for 13 years.

Political career

Nevada Secretary of State (2015-2023)

Cegavske was first elected to the secretary of state's office on November 4, 2014. She was sworn into office on January 5, 2015, replacing term-limited predecessor Ross Miller (D). Cegavske was re-elected in 2018.

Nevada State Senate, District 8 (2003-2014)

Cegavske represented District 8 in the Nevada State Senate from 2003 to 2014.

Elections

2022

See also: Nevada Secretary of State election, 2022

Barbara Cegavske was not able to file for re-election due to term limits.

2018

See also: Nevada Secretary of State election, 2018

See also: Nevada Secretary of State election, 2018 (June 12 Republican primary)

General election

General election for Nevada Secretary of State

Incumbent Barbara K. Cegavske defeated Nelson Araujo in the general election for Nevada Secretary of State on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Barbara K. Cegavske (R)	48.9	467,880
		Nelson Araujo (D)	48.2	461,551
		Other/Write-in votes	2.8	27,200

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 956,631 (100.00% precincts reporting)
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Nevada Secretary of State

Nelson Araujo advanced from the Democratic primary for Nevada Secretary of State on June 12, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Nelson Araujo

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Nevada Secretary of State

Incumbent Barbara K. Cegavske defeated Ernest Aldridge in the Republican primary for Nevada Secretary of State on June 12, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Barbara K. Cegavske	70.0	85,355
	Submit photo	Ernest Aldridge	30.0	36,508

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 121,863
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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2014

See also: Nevada secretary of state election, 2014

Secretary of State of Nevada, 2014
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Barbara Cegavske	50.4%	273,720
	Democratic	Kate Marshall	46.1%	250,612
	Independent	None of these candidates	3.5%	18,778
Total Votes				543,110
Election results via Nevada Secretary of State

2012

Cegavske ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House to represent Nevada's 4th District. Cegavske lost to Danny Tarkanian in the Republican primary on June 12, 2012.

Primary results

Nevada's 4th Congressional District Republican Primary, 2012

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Danny Tarkanian	31.5%	7,605
Barbara Cegavske	27.7%	6,674
Kenneth Wegner	21%	5,069
Dan Schwartz	11.3%	2,728
Kiran Hill	2.8%	666
Diana Anderson	2.5%	607
Mike Delarosa	1.5%	370
Sid Zeller	1%	252
Robert X. Leeds	0.7%	165
Total Votes		24,136

2010

See also: Nevada State Senate elections, 2010

Nevada State Senate, Clark 8 General election (2010)
Candidates		Votes
Barbara Cegavske (R)		17,127
Tammy Peterson (D)		13,573

2006

See also: Nevada State Senate elections, 2006

Nevada State Senate, Clark 8 District (2006)
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Barbara Cegavske (R)		14,884	54.51%
Chandra Cook		12,421	45.49%

2000

See also: Nevada State Assembly elections, 2000

Nevada State Assembly, Clark 5 District (2000)
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Barbara Cegavske (R)		6,457	54.63%
Kristen Hansen		5,362	45.37%

1998

Nevada State Assembly, Clark 5 District (1998)
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Barbara Cegavske (R)		6,392	100.0%

Campaign themes

2018

Campaign website

Cegavske’s campaign website stated the following:

“	Business Finalized contract and currently developing the replacement of a state-of-the-art processing system which will allow for more streamlined and efficient processing. Almost every filing processed by the Commercial Recordings Division will be available online when the e-SoS processing system replacement is completed. Due to process enhancement and division reorganization, a 1 – 3-day average turnaround time on regular filings has been maintained. Accordingly, the streamlined automation has allowed the office to focus on customer service, providing the highest level of service and prompt response to customer inquiries and filing needs. Expanded the use and reach of SilverFlume, Nevada’s Business Portal. SilverFlume is widely-used with more than 344,000 active customer-user accounts and 150 governmental users. The Secretary of State’s office continues to work with state, county, and local agencies in identifying and developing processes to allow more online licensing and information through SilverFlume. Despite increases in certain business taxes and reporting requirements, the office continues to maintain over 300,000 active business entities and over 340,000 active State business licenses. Actively participates in business expos and other business events and has spoken at numerous chamber and business organization meetings. Elections The main focus of the Secretary’s first term in office was the 2016 Election. Secretary Cegavske visited all 17 counties, meeting personally with the county clerks, registrars of voters, and their staff to ensure their needs and concerns were addressed. The Secretary and her staff worked directly with local election officials on training and to standardize practices and procedures. Secretary Cegavske looks forward to visiting all 17 counties again in 2017. Hosted two multi-day workshops with local election officials that included presenters with elections experience from all over the country. The workshops provided relevant information to local election officials and helped improved the quality of election administration in Nevada. Secretary Cegavske has met with local election officials on many other occasions to provide training, support, and listen to the needs of Nevada’s local election officials. In conjunction with the 2017 legislative session, the Secretary of State and election officials from all 17 counties procured $8 million in grant funding to replace the existing electronic voting system that is in use statewide. Voting rights for the military: Secretary Cegavske continues the enhancement and promotion of the Effective Absentee System for Elections (EASE), Nevada’s online ballot delivery system for military and overseas voters. EASE seamlessly integrates all the documents necessary for Nevada’s military members, their spouses, and dependents, and qualified overseas voters to register to vote, update existing voter registration information, request an absentee ballot, and receive and complete an absentee ballot for submittal. Secretary Cegavske traveled to Fort Bliss, Texas, prior to the 2016 election to introduce EASE to a Nevada National Guard military police unit that was preparing for deployment overseas. Nevada’s EASE program was a finalist in 2016 for the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) IDEAS award. Assembled the 2016 Election Task Force (ETF), a bipartisan group of individuals consisting of former governors, U.S. senators, secretaries of state, current and former legislators, local election officials, former election administrators, and election law experts. This group offered its vast experience and insight in preparation for the 2016 election. Convened the 2016 Election Integrity Task Force (EITF), which was comprised of the Secretary of State’s Office, the Nevada Attorney General’s Office, representatives from both Republican and Democrat parties, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Las Vegas Metro, and various local law enforcement agencies. The EITF investigates complaints regarding voter registration practices, potential voter fraud, and voter intimidation. The EITF is a model of jurisdictional cooperation for responding to election-related complaints. In 2016 and 2017, investigations commenced and arrests were made related to voter registration fraud and petition signature gathering fraud. Numerous EITF investigations are ongoing. Actively encouraged voter registration and participation through her community outreach efforts in advance of the successful 2016 primary and general elections. Spoke with various groups throughout the state on election-related matters and the importance of voting. Oversaw successful 2016 primary and general elections. Strengthened Nevada’s election laws relating to candidate residency requirements and political action committee (PAC) financial reporting requirements (see AB 21, 2017 legislative session). Additionally, Secretary Cegavske sponsored a successful bill that extended the deadline to register to vote by mail, added two additional days for online voter registration, and modified candidate Contributions and Expenses (C&E) reporting requirements to include ending account balances and itemization of expenses charged to a credit card (see AB 45, 2017 legislative session). Civics Education Established the Helen J. Stewart Award in 2017 to recognize Nevada High Schools that achieve voter registration of 85% or more of eligible students in their senior class. The purpose of the award is to launch students from high school who are poised for civic participation in their community by encouraging voter registration among young adults as they come of age. Secretary Cegavske continues to stress the importance of civics education. She and her staff visited and spoke at numerous schools in Northern and Southern Nevada educating students about the duties of the Nevada Secretary of State, encouraging students to talk to their parents about the importance of civic issues and the importance of participating in elections. As a member of the Education Commission of States (ECS) since 1997, she currently serves on the Executive Board of the National Center for Learning and Civics Education (NCLCE.) Worked with the Clark County School District to respond to the NCLCE State Civics Education Policy Gap Analysis comparing current civics education practices with established evidence-based best practices and competitive benchmarks. Supported and participated with Inspire Nevada during 2015, 2016 and 2017 school years. Secretary Cegavske is a fellow with the Hunt Kean Leadership Fellows; a national, nonpartisan program partnering with senior-level political leaders who have the knowledge, skill and will to be effective, reform-minded policymakers at the state level. Worked on legislation authorizing high schools to require students to take an examination in civics. (SB 322) Approved online “mock election” allowing students from the across the state, under teacher supervision, to participate. Securities Continued the mission protecting Nevada investors from securities fraud by licensing investment professionals, registering securities offerings, enforcing the state’s securities laws, and educating the public. Worked with Legislative Leadership relating to imposing a fiduciary duty on financial planners. Currently working on regulations. (SB 383 of the 2017 Legislative Session) During the 2015 legislative session, the office proposed and supported passage of the Nevada Uniform Securities Act, focusing on the protection of seniors and vulnerable persons from exploitation. Worked to reorganize the Criminal Investigation Unit to enhance the unit’s ability to respond to and investigate violations of Nevada Securities Law. Worked with members of both parties in the legislature to strengthen Athlete’s Agents legislation. Working on regulations and process changes relating to the legislation (AB 372 of 2017 Legislative Session) Notary Division Developed and implemented the online training program for new and renewing notary’s public, virtually negating the need for live, in-person training, allowing those needing the training to do so according to their needs and schedules. The office is also developing processes relating to e-notarization. Elected to the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) Executive Board as Member-at-Large and Liaison to the Notary Public Administrator Section. Currently striving to modernize notary appointment and registration processes. Worked with legislators and interested parties in developing legislation for notarization of electronic documents by audiovisual communications (remote notarization). Currently developing regulations and processes relating to remote notarization. (AB 413 of the 2017 Legislative Session) Worked with the legislature to strengthen the penalties for willful violation of Nevada Notary Law and for causing irreparable harm to a person. (AB 148 of 2017 Legislative Session) Document Preparation Services Liaised with both parties in the state legislature to strengthen Document Preparation Services statutes and increase the penalties for knowingly violating Document Preparation Service Statutes which caused irreparable harm to a victim. (AB 148 and AB 324) Praised by Nevada Department of Public Safety for fingerprinting and documentation procedures. The office was rated compliant in all areas audited regarding civil applicant background processing and was highly commended for its exemplary “attention to detail and quality control.” Living Will Lockbox Worked with the judicial branch on legislation pertaining to guardianships, resulting in the filing of a guardian nomination through the Nevada Lockbox administered by her office. The guardianship nomination lockbox takes effect January 1, 2018, and is currently under development. (SB 229 of 2017 Legislative Session)	”
—Cegavske for Secretary of State

Committee assignments

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Cegavske served on the following committees:

Nevada committee assignments, 2013
• Education
• Legislative Operations and Elections

2011-2012

In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Cegavske served on the following committees:

Nevada committee assignments, 2011
• Education
• Finance
• Legislative Operations and Elections

2009-2010

In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Cegavske served on the following committees:

Nevada committee assignments, 2009
• Energy, Infrastructure and Transportation
• Health and Human Services
• Education

Noteworthy events

Censured by the Nevada Republican Party (2021)

On April 11, 2021, the governing members of the Nevada Republican Party voted 226 to 212 to censure Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske, alleging that she failed to investigate the party's claims of voter fraud in the 2020 elections. According to The Nevada Independent, in March 2021, "the state party brought forward four boxes of evidence purporting to show tens of thousands of alleged examples of voter fraud that allegedly occurred in the 2020 election." On March 16, Cegavske's office released a statement saying, “While initial reports claimed that there were 122,918 unique voter complaints contained within the four boxes, a detailed review concluded that there was a total of 3,963 Elections Integrity Violation Reports, all filed by the chairman of the Nevada Republican Party — a number of which are already under investigation by law enforcement."

In response to the censure vote, Cegavske said, "Regrettably, members of my own political party have decided to censure me simply because they are disappointed with the outcome of the 2020 election. My job is to carry out the duties of my office as enacted by the Nevada Legislature, not carry water for the state GOP or put my thumb on the scale of democracy. Unfortunately, members of my own party continue to believe the 2020 general election was wrought with fraud - and that somehow I had a part in it - despite a complete lack of evidence to support that belief. Regardless of the censure vote today by the Nevada Republican Party Central Committee, I will continue in my efforts to oversee secure elections in Nevada and to restore confidence in our elections, confidence which has been destroyed by those falsely claiming the 2020 general election produced widespread fraud."

June 2017 request for voter rolls

See also: State government responses to the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity

On June 29, 2017, the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity, created by President Donald Trump (R) on May 11, requested information on registered voters from all 50 states dating back to 2006. The states were given until July 14 to respond. On June 30, Secretary Cegavske announced that the state would refuse to provide the requested information to the commission.

“	Many people have asked whether or not the Secretary of State’s office plans to comply with the request from the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity for voter registration information in Nevada. Other than the previously identified confidential information, state law (NRS 293.558) prohibits election officials from withholding voter registration information from the public. In addition, the state’s Public Records Act requires government entities to allow for inspection of public records. As a result, the Secretary of State’s office will provide the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity with only the publicly available voter registration information under Nevada law.	”
—Secretary Barbara Cegavske

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Barbara K. Cegavske campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2014	Nevada Secretary of State	Won	$485,300	N/A**
2010	Nevada State Senate, District 8	Won	$590,349	N/A**
2006	Nevada State Senate, Clark 8	Won	$626,845	N/A**
2002	Nevada State Senate, Clark 8	Won	$309,003	N/A**
2000	Nevada State Assembly, Clark 5	Won	$112,866	N/A**
1998	Nevada State Assembly, District 5	Won	$79,062	N/A**
1996	Nevada State Assembly, District 5	Won	$60,986	N/A**
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Nevada

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states.  To contribute to the list of Nevada scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2014

In 2014, the Nevada State Legislature did not hold a regular session.

2013

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show].

In 2013, the 77th Nevada State Legislature was in session from February 4 through June 4. Citizen Outreach: Ratings for the 2013 Nevada Legislature Legislators are scored on their votes for or against Citizen Outreach’s position. Nevada Conservation League: Senate and Assembly Legislators are scored on environment and conservation issues. Nevada Policy Research Institute: The 2013 Nevada Legislative Session Review & Report Card Legislators are scored on their voting record concerning economic issues. Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada: Facing Race – 2013 Legislative Report Card on Racial Equity Legislators are scored by the organization on bills related to "civic engagement, access to justice, health equity, economic opportunities, civil rights and economic equity." The American Conservative Union: 2013 Legislative Scorecard Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

2012

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show].
In 2012, the Nevada State Legislature did not hold a regular session.

2011

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show].

In 2011, the 76th Nevada State Legislature was in session from February 7 through June 7. Citizen Outreach: Ratings for the 2011 Nevada Legislature Legislators are scored on their votes for or against Citizen Outreach’s position. Nevada Policy Research Institute: The 2011 Nevada Legislative Session Review & Report Card Legislators are scored on their voting record concerning economic and education issues. Nevada State Education Association: 2011 Legislative Report Card Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to education issues. Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada: Facing Race 2011: Legislative Report Card on Racial equity Legislators are scored by the organization on bills related to "civic engagement, access to justice, health equity, economic opportunities, civil rights and economic equity." The American Conservative Union: 2011 Legislative Scorecard Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues. The Southern Nevada Legislative Scorecard Legislators are scored based on their voting record on bills the scorer considers in the interest of Southern Nevada.

Endorsements

Presidential preference

2012

See also: Endorsements by state officials of presidential candidates in the 2012 election

Barbara Cegavske endorsed Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election.

Personal

Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Cegavske and her husband, Tim, have two children.

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term "Barbara + Cegavske + Nevada + Senate"

Barbara Cegavske News Feed

See also

• Nevada Secretary of State
• Nevada Secretary of State election, 2014
• Nevada Secretary of State election, 2018
• Nevada State Senate

External links

Search Google News for this topic

Candidate

Nevada Secretary of State

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by -	Nevada Secretary of State 2015-2023	Succeeded by Cisco Aguilar (D)
Preceded by -	Nevada State Senate District 8 2003-2014	Succeeded by -
Preceded by -	Nevada State Assembly 1997-2001	Succeeded by -