🗳️ More than 60,000 Nevadans have already cast a ballot in June’s primary election, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. Nevada’s primary election is officially on June 9, but Saturday marked the beginning of the state’s in-person early voting period, which runs through June 5. Nearly 16,000 voters cast their ballots in person at early voting centers over the Memorial Day weekend.
Counties have also mailed more than 2 million ballots to voters statewide. 46,000 of those ballots have already been filled out and sent back. Mail ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day and received by county election officials no later than June 13 in order to be counted.
The Secretary of State’s office recommends voters mail their ballots no later than June 2 to ensure they arrive on time. They also suggest either voting in person or dropping off your mail ballot at a drop box after that date.
🏈 As Mental Health Awareness Month closes out, the Raiders Foundation awarded $250,000 to six local mental health organizations. The foundation raised the money at last year’s Silver and Black Gala. This year’s event, held on May 17, raised an additional $2.5 million to support mental health care. The Raiders Foundation donates funding to organizations dedicated to crisis and trauma responses.
🏒 The Vegas Golden Knights have swept the Colorado Avalanche and are now on their way to their third NHL Stanley Cup Finals. The team earned its fourth NHL Western Conference Finals win last night, with no losses in the series. The Avalanche were the last team to perform the same feat in 2022. The Knights now await their Stanley Cup Finals opponent from the Eastern Conference, either the Carolina Hurricanes or the Montreal Canadiens.
Recipients included nonprofits like the Boys & Girls Club of Southern Nevada and the LGBTQ+ center of Las Vegas, among others. Nevada ranks last in the nation for mental health care, according to a 2025 report from Mental Health America.
🏀 Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon didn't completely back down from her assertion a small player can't lead his team to the NBA championship now that Jalen Brunson has taken the New York Knicks to the NBA Finals. Hammon made her initial comments on ESPN in December 2023, saying the Knicks couldn't win the championship if the 6-foot-2 Brunson was their best player.
“If your best player is small, you're not winning,” Hammon said at the time. Those comments have generated some buzz after Brunson received the Larry Bird Trophy for MVP of the Eastern Conference finals after the Knicks swept the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night. He averaged 25.5 points and 7.8 assists in the series. The Knicks will face defending champion Oklahoma City or San Antonio in the finals. “I speak from experience,” Hammon said Tuesday. "Allen Iverson got MVP and he lost in the finals. I think the two best teams are probably in the West, but I'm up for being proven wrong.
That's the other thing, I think Jalen Brunson's a hell of a player, a hell of a player. I'm speaking historically on the NBA with what I said. I don't know why everybody's so stuck on that. I said it two years ago. “I said what I said. If he proves me wrong, he proves me wrong.” Hammon, who has coached the Aces to three of the past four WNBA championships, has a clear rooting interest in the NBA playoffs.
The Hall of Famer played for the San Antonio Silver Stars — who eventually moved to Las Vegas and became the Aces — and later was a Spurs assistant under coach Gregg Popovich. “Oh, you know who I'm cheering for,” Hammon said.
🥊 It's been hard to imagine the scene planned for the Trump White House on June 14: mixed martial arts fighters in a cage match on the South Lawn. Though it's easier to visualize this week, as the Ultimate Fighting Championship has begun setting up bleachers and a giant arch for the planned event. The work is visible to tourists and TV cameras. The UFC also released a rendering of the event, showing several thousand spectators surrounding a fenced-in octagon, the UFC's trademark, where a series of men will face off.
In an interview for the NPR video podcast Newsmakers, Dana White, President Donald Trump's friend and the head of the UFC, voiced some doubt about what he's being asked to do. "There's two things I hate. I hate stadiums, and even worse than a stadium is fighting outside," White said. "There's just so many variables… rain and lightning… bugs."
White nonetheless took on the task of building a temporary outdoor stadium. "We're celebrating America's 250th birthday on the lawn of the White House. And, you know, there possibly couldn't be a greater honor than that, especially for me as an American," he said.
The unprecedented event is sure to draw polarizing opinions, which is true of the UFC itself. Watch the full conversation and more here.
