A bid by Nevada Democrats to vote first in their party’s 2028 presidential nominating process fell short Friday when a committee recommended that South Carolina retain the country’s first primary instead.

A subcommittee of the Democratic National Committee that sets the party’s election calendar made the selection through a vote. South Carolina received 26 votes, Nevada 19 and New Hampshire four.

The entire DNC needs to affirm its Rules and Bylaws Committee’s picks at its next meeting in August. Nevada Democrats are slated to vote first in the West.

Nevada’s effort to vote first in the nation was led by the Nevada State Democratic Party, which pitched what it said is the Silver State’s voter diversity and progressive voting laws, as well as its geographic location and accessible media market that it said facilitates campaigning.

While no Democrat has formally announced a run for the White House, several officials rumored as potential candidates have been making their rounds in the state for months.

“We’ve been consistent all along, putting Nevada first best sets our party up for success,” party Chair Daniele Monroe-Moreno said in a news release after the committee’s vote. “Nevada is the broad coalition of diverse voices — Latino, Black, AANHPI (Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander), and Native American as well as white working-class voters — our party must win back if we’re serious about flipping the White House in 2028.”

Monroe-Moreno said that Nevada will be an early true test for candidates’ ability to win in the general election.

Under the proposed calendar, South Carolina would vote on Jan. 22, 2028.

Nevada Democrats will follow on Feb. 1 and New Hampshire, New Mexico, Michigan and Virginia will vote on subsequent Tuesdays until Super Tuesday, which is scheduled for March 7.

Democrats in Nevada’s congressional delegation reacted to the state’s otherwise early placement in the primary calendar.

“Our state’s early position in the 2028 primary calendar will make Nevada a critical part of the process and help us nominate a Democrat who can win the voters we need to take back the White House,” said Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., on X.

She touted the state’s diversity and its position as a battleground state.

“This has never been about one state or one community,” Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev., said on X. “It’s about building the coalition that wins 270 electoral votes.”

He added: “Nevada is where candidates demonstrate they can unite the diverse coalition Democrats need to win — not just a primary, but the presidency.”

Horsford and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., sent a letter to the rules and bylaws committee this week in a final push to convince them about Nevada’s potential as a first-in-the-nation state.

“Nevada is a state that looks, works, and votes like America — winning here means building the coalition of voters that it takes to win across the country,” Cortez Masto wrote on X after the vote. “As the second Democratic primary, Nevada will be a key proving ground for any candidate who’s ready to win the White House and fight for working Americans in 2028.”

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com.