WASHINGTON _ A new poll shows Nevada Rep. Dina Titus in a tight race against Sen. Dean Heller if she decides to run in 2018.
The Nevada Democrat is mulling a run against the vulnerable Republican, but would have to first face off against colleague Rep. Jacky Rosen in a primary.
The poll has Heller at 47 percent and Titus at 45 percent, which is within the poll's margin of error, the Las Vegas Review-Journal first reported.
Titus' campaign paid Anzalone Liszt Grove Research, a public opinion firm to conduct the survey of 600 likely voters in June. The group worked for President Barack Obama's 2008 and 2012 campaigns, polling in nine states, including Nevada.
Heller has been the subject of heavy criticism from Democrats both in Washington and Nevada throughout the Senate's attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. He is the only Republican senator up for re-election next year in a state won by Democrat Hillary Clinton last fall.
So far the only declared candidate in the race to unseat Heller is Rosen, who former Democratic Senate Leader Harry Reid chose to challenge him. Rosen, a freshman from the Las Vegas suburbs, said Reid encouraged her to get in the race.
Titus used the polling results to push back against Reid's preference for Rosen.
"These figures dispel the Reid myth that I am not competitive in a statewide race," Titus said in a statement.
If Titus does decide to run, it would be the third time she faced an opponent chosen by Reid. The congresswoman from Nevada's 1st Congressional District went up against then-Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson to be the Nevada Democratic gubernatorial candidate in 2006. Titus beat Gibson, who Reid backed, but lost in the general election.
Titus defeated Reid's former intern and then-state Sen. Ruben Kihuen in a the 2012 1st District primary. Kihuen now represents Nevada's 4th Congressional District.
Titus said that she would announce the decision on whether she would challenge Heller "after spending time in the district during the month of August."
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales rates the Nevada Senate race Toss-Up.
