The Clark County public administrator race, usually the kind of contest most voters skip on the sample ballot, is suddenly in the spotlight. Three Democrats, Stephanie Itkin-Goodman, M.J. Ivy and Edgar Velazquez, are battling in the June primary for the county office that steps in when a resident dies without a will. The stakes are straightforward but serious: who can best protect vulnerable estates and keep property from being mishandled in probate.
Court orders and allegations
Scrutiny intensified after reporting from Nevada Current detailed a 2025 court order and a probate commissioner's show-cause finding involving Velazquez, a real-estate agent who has handled probate work. The commissioner found that Velazquez "eroded estate value" through self-dealing and "perpetrated fraud on the court and heirs," leading a judge to suspend him as administrator of roughly two dozen estates and transfer those matters to the county public administrator.
According to the same reporting, court records show Velazquez used estate funds to pay vendors including LV Abatement Services and Estate Administration Services and paid Compass a 7 percent commission on at least one decedent's property sale. Filings indicate Velazquez has appealed the orders to the Nevada Court of Appeals, a reminder that the legal fight over his past work is still very much alive while he campaigns.
Who is on the ballot
Filings with the Clark County Election Department list Itkin-Goodman, Ivy and Velazquez as the Democratic contenders for public administrator. Stephanie Itkin-Goodman is a deputy attorney general and former assistant district attorney, and her campaign materials say she wants to bring "compassion, clarity, and accountability" to the office. She is also proposing that residents be able to create a will online via the public administrator's website.
M.J. Ivy, who previously ran for a state higher-education post, rounds out the field alongside Velazquez, who remains on the ballot despite the suspensions and court action described in the probate filings. It is a low-profile race on paper, but for families who end up relying on the public administrator, the outcome is anything but minor.
Velazquez’s business ties and spending in question
Multiple property listings show Velazquez operating as a licensed agent with Compass Realty & Management, with his name appearing on several Las Vegas area listings. Court records summarized in reporting indicate that, in the disputed probate matters, estate funds were used to pay contractors and administration vendors and that Velazquez paid Compass a commission on a decedent's home sale, findings that are now central to the legal challenge.
Nevada Current notes that the financial entries in question include payments of nearly $25,000 to LV Abatement Services and additional thousands to estate administration services. Velazquez has appealed the orders, so voters are essentially watching a campaign and a court fight unfold in parallel.
Why this obscure office matters
Under Nevada law, the public administrator is tasked with identifying, securing and administering the assets of people who die without a private representative, including managing or selling property to protect the estate's interests. The duties of the office are laid out in the Nevada Revised Statutes, which spell out how the administrator is supposed to step in when there is no one else officially in charge.
The office drew far wider attention after the 2022 arrest of then-public administrator Robert "Rob" Telles in the killing of Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German, an episode that put a harsh spotlight on oversight and public trust in this little-known corner of county government, as reported by the AP. Since then, the question of who should control the keys to unclaimed estates in southern Nevada has carried a sharper edge.
The Democratic primary is scheduled for Tuesday, June 9, 2026, with early voting running through June 8, according to notices from the Clark County Election Department. In what might be one of the most consequential low-drama races on the ballot, voters will be weighing professional résumés, campaign promises and those recent court findings as they decide who should handle probate and unclaimed-property work in Clark County.
