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Oceguera Elected Assembly Speaker For 2011 Legislative Session
Assemblyman John Oceguera, D-Las Vegas, has been unanimously elected as Speaker for the upcoming legislative session.
Oceguera has served as majority leader under former Speaker Barbara Buckley, who could not run again because of term limits.
The vote of the 26-member Democratic caucus on Wednesday will be formalized on the first day of the legislative session on Feb. 7.
Oceguera was first elected to the Assembly in 2000, and he will be termed out of office in 2012. The 2011 session will be his last.
He takes over a caucus that is slightly weaker in terms of numbers, but more significantly affected by the loss of a two-thirds veto-proof majority held by Democrats in 2009. Democrats lost two seats in the Tuesday general election, bringing their number down to 26 to 16 for Republicans.
The 2011 session will be critical for Democrats and Republicans as the once-a-decade process of redrawing political boundaries must be accomplished. A key issue will be whether to expand the size of the Legislature. Lawmakers will also have to create one new congressional seat.
“We fought hard to win each election to give us a majority,� Oceguera. “Now it is time to turn from the conflict of those elections to the cooperation we need to rebuild Nevada.�
Oceguera emphasized that Democrats in the Assembly are ready to, “work with every Nevadan, from every part of the state, from every political party, from every perspective,� to meet the challenges of the economy, jobs, education reform and more efficient, more transparent government.
“We celebrated an election victory Tuesday night,� Oceguera said. “But Nevadans won’t have a true victory until we build a more diverse economy, reform and support our schools, and create a government they can trust. We can no longer tolerate being in last place.�
Oceguera called on Republicans, including GOP Gov.-elect Brian Sandoval, business and labor leaders and Nevada citizens to come together to find common solutions.
“There’s a time for partisan differences, but now is the time to rebuild Nevada� he said. “We can’t wait for another election to come and go before taking action. Right now every one of us has the responsibility to become part of the solution, not part of the problem. There will be honest disagreements, but let those disagreements come with a real plan and specifics instead of simply slogans.�
The 16-member GOP Assembly caucus is deciding its leadership later today.
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