The only surprise in Tuesday’s primary elections for Nevada’s U.S. Senate seat might have been that the race wasn't called even sooner.

While Nevada’s political colors have been shifting from red to blue for two decades now, complete control of the Silver State has eluded Democrats so far. But this year, Democrats are poised to finally make that jump.

A bipartisan group of Colorado lawmakers kicked off an anti-gerrymandering campaign this month. They want to take redistricting decisions out of the hands of state legislators and put it into the hands of twelve voters.

Democrats hoping to take control of the U.S. Senate in November believe one of their best chances to pick up a seat this year lies in battleground Nevada, where Sen. Dean Heller is the only Republican running for re-election in a state that Democrat Hillary Clinton carried in 2016.

Wes Duncan has made it a point on the campaign trail to say that he left the attorney general’s office because he didn’t want to run for public office as a state employee.

Steve Hill won’t be the last official to leave Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval’s administration in coming months, local analysts say. Hill, executive director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, confirmed Thursday that he is a candidate for a leading role at the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. The confirmation followed Republican Assembly Leader Paul Anderson’s Wednesday announcement that he is resigning his seat, which he confirmed is to succeed Hill at the economic development office.

While voters and candidates have long lamented the high cost of campaigning at the state and federal levels, even running for a part-time local seat in the Las Vegas Valley is an expensive proposition. In elections for City Council seats earlier this year, turnout was sparse, making the cost per vote more expensive.

If money turns out to be the deciding factor in this fall’s election, Democrats so far have positioned themselves well to take back control of the Senate.