Trump-Tapped Flippo Poised to Take GOP Nod in Deep Red Nevada House Primary

The retired Air Force officer holds a double-digit percentage point lead over James Settelmeyer in the GOP race to succeed retiring eight-term Rep. Mark Amodei.

Retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. David Flippo thanks supporters at the Washoe County Republican Party offices in Reno after winning his Nevada Congressional District 2 Republican primary on June 9, 2026. John Haughey/The Epoch Times

RENO, Nev.—Financial adviser and Iraq War combat veteran Dave Flippo appears to have defeated longtime state lawmaker James Settelmeyer in their deep-red Congressional District 2 (CD 2) Republican primary and will enter the general election as a heavy November favorite in a Nevada district that has never sent a Democrat to Washington.

Flippo, riding President Donald Trump’s May 29 endorsement, was leading the 13-candidate GOP pack by more than 7,500 votes—by 10.4 percentage points—with 83 percent of the tally counted at 1 a.m. PDT, and the Nevada secretary of state is unlikely to update those numbers until morning.