Mark Kampf, the top elections official in Nye County, Nevada, known for its rural landscape and recent electoral controversies, has tendered his resignation, according to a letter received by the county.
Kampf gave no reason in the letter but did indicate his resignation would be effective from March 31. County representatives refrained from providing additional details regarding the circumstances surrounding Kampf’s departure.
Kampf assumed the position during claims of widespread election fraud during the 2022 midterms. The county commission, responding to conspiracy theories surrounding the 2020 election, unanimously voted to discard voting machines, prompting the resignation of Kampf’s predecessor.
Kampf facilitated a hand count, albeit not as the county’s primary method. Instead, the county utilized machines alongside manual counting, leading to clashes with organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada (ACLU), which raised concerns about election integrity and efficiency.
The hand-count, initiated in late October 2022, encountered legal hurdles and was temporarily halted following legal challenges by the ACLU and subsequent directives from the secretary of state’s office. Kampf’s tenure also coincided with the candidacy of Jim Marchant, running for secretary of state, who claimed election manipulation and garnered support from a group of so-called election deniers across the country.
Nevada Democratic Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar, who succeeded Marchant, expressed gratitude to Kampf for his service, acknowledging the challenges faced by election officials amid heightened scrutiny. Kampf’s resignation adds to the turnover among county election officials in Nevada, with several counties witnessing changes in leadership since the 2020 election.
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