The longtime state lawmaker Tick Segerblom is switching roles in January.
He will now represent District E on the Clark County Commission, a seat previously held by Chris Giunchigliani. Giunchigliani was term-limited out of office. She ran for governor but lost in the primary to Governor-elect Steve Sisolak.
Segerblom's district includes parts of central Las Vegas and much of the east side of the county.
Segerblom is a Democrat like Giunchigliani. He said because they both share progressive ideas it is unlikely there will be big differences between himself and Chris Giunchigliani.
“Just having a new fresh face, new eyes on things I think will be fun," he said. "I’m hopeful we’ll be able to do some new things.”
Segerblom is perhaps best known for championing the legalization of marijuana in the state.
He said legalizing it removed the hypocrisy of a lot of people consuming the drug but it not being legal.
The next step in the legalization process is addressing the issue of public consumption, he said. Currently, adults are allowed to consume marijuana in a private home, but not in tourist locations like the Strip or downtown.
Segerblom said that has to change.
"The reality is you can't have tourists coming here, encourage them to buy marijuana, promoting the revenue from that for schools and then say, 'Oh, by the way, you can't use it anywhere,'" he said.
Segerblom and other lawmakers recently toured pot lounges in San Francisco. He said the lounges were impressive. The two biggest problems that need to be addressed are safety and making sure illegal drugs aren't being used at the establishments.
While Segerblom might get more support for that part of his agenda, his views on water may get pushback.
The commissioner-elect is strongly opposed to a purposed plan to build a pipeline to bring water from rural counties in Northern Nevada to Southern Nevada.
The pipeline project has been in the works for years but so far it hasn't actually gotten off the ground. Segerblom wants to see Southern Nevada do a better job of conserving water rather than building a very expensive pipeline.
"We have to learn to live within our means," he said. "I think if we focus on conservation we can continue to grow but maybe we can't grow as fast and we can't ultimately be as big."
He said the amount of water that we could bring from the rural counties is a "pittance compared with what we can do through conservation."
Water and marijuana aren't the only two things Segerblom would like to address while on the commission. He is also interested in strengthening gun laws, immigration issues, homelessness, preserving the Red Rock Canyon area, renaming McCarran International Airport and voicing his opposition to President Donald Trump.
Tick Segerblom, county commissioner-elect