2026 Election › Candidate Comparison

Congressional District 2

U.S. House of Representatives — Nevada's 2nd Congressional District

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Democrat

Indivisible endorsed

David Flippo

Republican

Residency

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

40-year resident of Reno, NV.

David Flippo

4-month resident of Reno, NV. 12-year resident of Las Vegas, NV.

Career

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Professional background as a licensed social worker, including work in adoption placement and hospice/palliative care. Former Nevada Assembly member representing District 27, including three terms as Assembly Majority Leader. Renowned for the degree of research and preparation on legislation. Most recently served as Chief of Staff for the Nevada Attorney General.

David Flippo

Worked in preventive-maintenance program management for BP on Alaska's North Slope after retiring from the Air Force as a Lieutenant Colonel after a 24-year military career.

Was an unsuccessful candidate for CD4 in 2024, was running again for CD4, then switched to CD2 candidacy when Amodei announced retirement.

Education

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Bachelor's degree from the University of Nevada, Reno, and a master's in social work from the University of Michigan.

David Flippo

Bachelor's degree from Montana State University and a master's degree in public administration from Valdosta State University.

Endorsed By

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

CHC BOLD PAC, Teamsters, PLAN Action, NOW National/NOW Nevada, IATSE, Northern Nevada Central Labor Council, INVCC.

David Flippo

Trump, Gov. Lombardo (originally backed a different candidate during the primary), Rep. Paul Gosar, Turning Point Action, National Right to Life/Nevada Right to Life, and campaign co-chairs Robin Titus and PK O'Neill. Republicans Cong. Amodei and Sen. Titus have publicly refused to endorse Flippo.

Financial disclosure

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Disclosure filed and is available on www.nvsos.gov

David Flippo

Has not met the deadline to file disclosure.

Campaign Finance & Government Ethics

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Supports overturning Citizens United, mandatory public financing of federal campaigns, mandatory dark-money disclosure, and closing the lobbying "revolving door." Says she'll hold regular town halls and publish her voting record.

David Flippo

Opposes taxpayer-funded political campaigns. Supports faster campaign-finance disclosure, tougher enforcement against foreign money, a ban on members of Congress trading individual stocks, stronger lobbyist-disclosure rules, and term limits. Supports a balanced budget amendment while at the same time supporting increases in military spending.

Taxes

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Supports billionaires and corporations paying a higher effective rate. Wants federal revenue directed toward healthcare, education, and housing. Wants tax relief targeted at working families.

David Flippo

Opposes billionaires and corporations paying a higher effective rate. Called it a wealth-tax approach that would deter investment. Has signed the Americans for Tax Reform "Taxpayer Protection Pledge" against new taxes. Supports a simpler, flatter tax code and closing loopholes rather than new taxes, paired with lower federal spending.

Affordability & Cost of Living

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Supports restoring hundreds of millions of tax dollars stripped by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) that funded programs benefitting everyday Nevadans. Those funds instead are now going to billionaires.

David Flippo

Supports cutting wasteful Washington spending to fight inflation. Wants to slash regulations and red tape that drive up prices.

Healthcare

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Supports the Affordable Care Act, ensuring Medicaid covers mental and behavioral health care, and protecting reproductive freedom through federal legislation. Points to her state legislative record supporting Nevada's public-option health plan and drug-price transparency measures.

David Flippo

Partial Support Medicare and Medicaid should remain available, but no other taxpayer-funded programs are necessary.

Iran War

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Opposes "We've picked a war with a country whose mineral, gas and oil reserves are enormous. Because of the supply disruption, we have skyrocketed the value of those resources for Iran. They're currently worth $27 trillion. We're strengthening our adversaries."

David Flippo

Supports "I fully support what President Trump is doing. We need to open up the strait, it needs to be a clear waterway. We need the flow of oil to start again."

SAVE Act / Elections & Voting

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Opposes the SAVE Act, calling it a barrier to voter access. Supports expanding mail and early voting, automatic and same-day voter registration, redistricting reform, and campaign finance disclosure. Opposes the Trump administration's cuts to federal election-security (CISA) funding and staffing.

David Flippo

Supports the SAVE Act, which puts restrictions on who can vote, including proof-of-citizenship voter registration, voter ID for federal elections, and cleaning up voter rolls. Says states should run elections, with Congress protecting federal elections from fraud and foreign interference.

Data Centers

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Opposes She opposes data centers on public land and wants audits of water and energy use. Says data centers "need to be paying their own way in Nevada" and supports revisiting the tax abatements Nevada approved in 2015, calling the current terms a "sweetheart deal" given how much the industry has grown. Has raised concerns about the water and resource use of new AI-scale data centers.

David Flippo

Supports As long as they do not increase Nevadans' utility costs.

Social Security & Seniors

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Opposes
  • Cuts to Social Security or raising the eligibility age
Supports
  • Expanding benefits, especially for low-income seniors
  • Strengthening Medicare
  • Letting Medicare negotiate more drug prices, and capping out-of-pocket costs
  • Expanded retirement savings options
  • Accessible senior transit, particularly in rural areas

David Flippo

Opposes
  • Cuts to Social Security and Medicare for current seniors and near-retirees
Supports
  • Eliminating federal taxes on Social Security benefits
  • Expanded telehealth
  • Believes competition will lower prescription drug costs
  • Flexible rural transportation programs for seniors

Clean Energy & Climate Change

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Supports continued federal clean-energy funding, citing the Solar for All program in Nevada defunded by the Trump administration. Also supports the development of solar and wind in Nevada.

David Flippo

Opposes Asserts that clean energy policies raise energy costs; supports streamlined permitting for "responsible energy development" and reduced U.S. reliance on China for clean-energy components. Supports federal investment in wildfire fuels reduction, water storage, and grid reliability, describing this as "resilience" rather than climate policy.

Tariffs

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Opposes She actively criticizes Donald Trump's economic policies, arguing that tariffs and related proposals drive up costs and hurt working families.

David Flippo

Supports He has stated that he backs the tariffs as a practical tool to help bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States.

ICE Tactics

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Opposes Campaign site calls for "a reformed immigration system that works, not federal agents pulling families apart," and has criticized recent immigration enforcement actions in Nevada communities.

David Flippo

Supports Lists illegal immigration among his top concerns and supports increased federal enforcement and border security, as well as deportation of "illegal aliens."

Public Lands

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Opposes
  • Large-scale federal public land sales in Nevada
Supports
  • Continued federal funding for wildfire and land-management agencies (U.S. Forest Service, BLM, FEMA) and restoring cuts to federal firefighting capacity

David Flippo

Supports the release and transfer of federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands to local jurisdictions to promote attainable housing and economic growth.

Reproductive Health

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Supports protecting reproductive freedom through federal legislation. Has a state legislative record eliminating out-of-pocket costs for contraception.

David Flippo

Opposes Endorsed by National Right to Life and Nevada Right to Life. Has criticized his opponent's votes against parental notification requirements for minors seeking abortion, and says he will "fight for parental rights and for life" in Congress (per his campaign's social media statements).

Public Safety & Criminal Justice

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Supports body cameras, independent investigations of officer-involved shootings, and more federal funding for crime-victim services and the Violence Against Women Act.

David Flippo

Opposes what he calls a "soft on crime" approach, and supports reviewing "vague federal laws" he says over-criminalize "ordinary Americans." Supports increased funding for police, prosecutors, and border and anti-trafficking enforcement.

Affordable Housing

Teresa Benitez-Thompson

Supports building workforce housing that everyday Nevadans can afford.

David Flippo

Abstaining

Sources & Methodology

Candidates' official campaign websites (electteresa.com, flippo4nv.com) and social media, matched Questions & Answers published by This Is Reno's 2026 Election Guide, Ballotpedia, and nonpartisan news coverage (The Nevada Independent, Nevada Appeal, Nevada Current). Compiled August 2026; candidate positions may be updated or clarified as the campaign continues.

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