CARSON CITY (AP) — A Nevada System of Higher Education Regent says he's becoming a Democrat due to disagreements with Republicans over increasing higher education funding.
Regent James Dean Leavitt said in a letter to the Las Vegas Sun that he changed his party registration from Republican to Democrat on June 2 due to his former party's failure to see "the need and benefits" of investing in higher education.
Leavitt said that some members of the Republican party reject compromise and pressure candidates to sign no-tax pledges or face politically-motivated recall elections. He said he's spent the last ten years as a regent advocating to raise revenue in the state to better fund higher education.
Leavitt was first elected to the board in 2004 and also owns a law firm in Las Vegas