(LAS VEGAS) — Nevada Republican Danny Tarkanian says he’s agreed to drop out of a U.S. Senate race and instead seek a House seat at President Donald Trump’s request.
Tarkanian said in a statement Friday that Trump and his advisers reached out to him late Wednesday and asked him to instead run for a House seat he lost in 2016.
It would be great for the Republican Party of Nevada, and it’s unity if good guy Danny Tarkanian would run for Congress and Dean Heller, who is doing a really good job, could run for Senate unopposed!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 16, 2018
Tarkanian says he is confident he would have won the Senate race against incumbent Republican Dean Heller, but said the president feels Republicans need a united ticket in Nevada.
He says he plans to instead run in the state’s 3rd Congressional District. That seat is being vacated by Democrat Jacky Rosen, who is running against Heller.
Tarkanian had frequently criticized Heller for failing to strongly support the president’s agenda. Heller has criticized the president in the past, but more recently became an ally.