Former Sen. John Ensign, who resigned earlier this year facing ethics investigations, has re-entered Nevada politics with a donation by his Political Action Committee, Battle Born PAC, to the Republican candidate in the special election to represent Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District.
Battle Born donated $5,000 to Mark Amodei on Friday.
Amodei is running in a special election to fill a vacancy that was created by Ensign’s departure: when the former senator stepped down, then-Rep. Dean Heller was appointed to fill the remainder of his Senate term, kicking off Nevada’s first ever special election to fill a vacant congressional seat.
Amodei’s Democratic opponent, Kate Marshall, has out-raised Amodei overall, but Amodei has had the help of hundreds of thousands of dollars in independent expenditures by outside groups like the National Republican Congressional Committee and American Crossroads.
“John Ensign is a longtime friend and we appreciate his service to the people of Nevada as well as his support for the campaign, just as Kate Marshall undoubtedly is appreciative of what she’s received from Harry Reid, Steny Hoyer and Emily’s List,” said Amodei’s communications director Peter DeMarco.
Amodei leads in early voting according to data released by the Secretary of State’s office.