Las Vegas City Wire

As crime rises in Nevada, political endorsements by law enforcement groups are shifting in the U.S. Senate race.

Key law enforcement groups which previously endorsed current Nevada Sen. Cortez Masto, a Democrat, have now instead chosen to endorse her Republican challenger Adam Laxalt, Fox News reported.

"I’m honored to have the support of Nevada’s Fraternal Order of Police and law enforcement organizations across the state," Laxalt said on Twitter. "We’re turning the page on the Democrats’ soft-on-crime approach and helping our police  protect our communities."

 A March report from SmartWise reveals Nevada's crime rate,  which sits at 4.6 incidents per 1,000, is higher than the national average (4.0 per 1,000). Polls reveal that 61% of state residents are concerned on a daily basis that crime might happen to them. Furthermore,  only 4 in 10 Nevadans feel safe in their state.

 Laxalt received an endorsement from the Public Safety  Alliance of Nevada (PSAN), which represents over 10,000 law enforcement officers in more than 100 state and local groups. Among eleven other member organizations who switched their support to Laxalt include the  Nevada Fraternal Order of Police, the Las Vegas Peace Officers  Association and the Peace Officers Association of the Clark County School  District, Fox reported.

According to Fox,  John Abel, Public Safety Alliance of Nevada director, said  Laxalt "stood by cops when it mattered, and we are proud to stand by  him now." Abel also boasted about Laxalt's time as attorney general, as he "organized the first statewide Law Enforcement summit, [he] took action to combat the spread of illegal drugs and was tough on crime.  Our organization is proud to support his campaign for the United States  Senate, where we know he will continue working with cops to make  Nevada’s communities safe."  

In a statement to Fox, Laxalt said, "Few things are more important to me than fighting rising crime in Nevada and across the country," Laxalt said in a statement to  Fox News Digital. "Support from the brave men and women of Nevada's law  enforcement is humbling."      

Laxalt served as Nevada attorney general from January 2015  to January 2019, according to Ballotpedia. Masto was his predecessor.

Masto's loss of polic endorsements could be attributed to the Democratic Party's strong history of defunding law enforcement, as she pushed "the agenda of anti-police radicals in her party that undermines cops at every turn,"  Laxalt said.

The Republican candidate told voters "as our next Senator I  will oppose defunding the police and ensure our officers have the tools they need to do their jobs, just as I did when I was Nevada's Attorney  General,"   Fox reported.