By Mark Waite

U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, won almost half the Nye County Republican vote during that party’s Saturday caucus. The result contrasted sharply with statewide results.

Unofficial results show Paul garnered 454 votes, for 45.8 percent of the votes cast in Nye County. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney finished second with 291 votes, 29.3 percent, former House Speaker Rep. Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., was third with 166 votes, or 16.7 percent, while former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., received 80 votes.

Paul was the only presidential candidate to visit Pahrump in the 2012 campaign. He visited a highly enthusiastic crowd of about 250 people at the former Skate Zone Friday. Romney’s wife, Ann, campaigned here in October, while Gingrich’s daughter, Jackie Cushman, spoke at the Lincoln-Reagan Day Dinner Friday night.

Statewide, Romney was declared the winner with 16,486 votes, 50 percent of the total, Gingrich finished second with 6,956 votes or 21.1 percent, Paul placed third with 6,175, or 18.7 percent, and Santorum, who hardly campaigned in the state, ended up fourth with 3,277 votes, 9.9 percent.

Voters were required to show photo identification, that even sent District Court Judge Kimberly Wanker back to her car. Some Republicans complained they didn’t know voting would be closed at 11 a.m.

Some voters interviewed by the Pahrump Valley Times said they cast their ballot for their second choice who they thought would be more electable.

“I voted for Newt Gingrich. I would’ve liked to vote for Santorum but I think he’s too far down in the polls to make it. I thought he was the best person for the job. I think he’s got strong values and he stands for what he believes in,” Wendy Brown said.

“We voted for Gingrich. I’m not real comfortable with Romney, he’s kind of almost another Obama,” Janisse Agers said.

“We like Ron Paul. We like what he stands for. But I don’t think he is electable against Obama,” Mike Agers said. But he added, “whoever is a Republican, if it’s Mickey Mouse, I’m voting for him, getting this guy Obama out of here.”

Roxanne Cooper said she supported Paul who beat everybody in her precinct 26.

“I like Ron Paul because I think the others, they were running a smear campaign and they were running the Republican Party, which we’re trying to change. They were making it into a joke. There were smear campaigns. I just don’t feel they’re qualified. They’re not dealing with the issues.”

“This election will be the fifth time that I voted for Ron Paul for president. The first two times I had to write him in,” Darell Hott said. “No. 1, he’s a veteran. No. 2, he knows what duty, honor, country means and he believes in the Constitution and what more could you ask for, freedom. Gingrich is another one of the same ilk that we have in there right now.”

Chuck Patti said he voted for Paul. He was suspicious of Romney who said in advertisements he will support his church, his family and his country.

“I thought church and state were separated in this country,” Patti asked. “Then a couple days ago, he says I don’t worry about the very poor people.”

Joe Heath said he supported Paul.

“He’s been consistent for the past 30 years. I started following him in 2007 for the last campaign because he was speaking like the real people and not flip-flopping and not saying the exact opposite thing in the same sentence,” Heath said.

Paul, who advocates withdrawing troops from overseas, believes in defending our country, instead of the borders of Japan or Germany, Heath said. Heath believes that would be an instant shot in the arm for the economy.

Artie Venchiarutti wanted to cast his vote for Gingrich but said he arrived too late, after 11 a.m., due to the detours on Blagg Road that added time to his trip to the central Pahrump caucus location at Rosemary Clarke Middle School.

“I’m from Ohio. I don’t know this caucus. Back in Ohio they vote all day long. Things were all screwed up. I lost half an hour coming up here because of the streets. I came from the other end of town.

“I didn’t know how the addresses ran up here. I like Newt, basically he’s for the flat tax. He wants to get rid of Obamacare. He wants to get rid of all those czars when he gets in there,” Venchiarutti said.

Mike Johnson said he left his business, assuming at 11 a.m. the vote would be open.

“Having this kind of confusion is unforgiveable,” Johnson said.

Fely Quitevis, the chairman of the Nye County Republican Party Central Committee, said party members were well informed of the 11 a.m. deadline through robo calls by Gov. Brian Sandoval and notices in the newspaper.

Republican activist Lillian Donohue said a Paul supporter tore up her letters of support for Gingrich during the Saturday morning caucus meetings.

Quitevis said the Nye County Republican Party Central Committee plans to ask the Nevada Legislature to abandon the caucus vote and go back to holding the presidential vote during the Nevada primary.

The Nevada primary, which this year includes all candidates running for every office but the president, will take place June 12.

Quitevis said turnout was down from the first Nye County Republican caucus four years ago when 1,200 Republicans turned out, just under 1,000 came out to vote this year.

There weren’t any campaign signs posted all over the grounds of Rosemary Clarke Middle School, like at most elections in front of public places like the Bob Ruud Community Center.

Nye County School Superintendent Rob Roberts said school district policy forbids campaigning on school grounds except when the facility is rented. On Saturday, Rosemary Clarke Middle School was rented out for the caucus, he said.

Despite the differences in opinion among the Grand Old Party, voter Patricia Buffum said, “whoever gets the nomination, we all decided — at least in our precinct, and I think they all have the same idea — we’re going to pull together behind the nominee because we don’t want the president to be re-elected.”

But Patti predicted Obama will be re-elected in November, no matter who the Republicans nominate.