Representative James David Santini

James David Santini (August 13, 1937 – September 22, 2015) was an American attorney, politician, and lobbyist who served as the U.S. Representative for Nevada’s at-large congressional district from 1975 to 1983. A member of the Democratic Party during his four terms in the House of Representatives, he contributed to the legislative process during a significant period in American history, representing the interests of his Nevada constituents. He remained a Democrat until 1986, when he joined the Republican Party.

Santini was born in Reno, Nevada, and graduated from Bishop Manogue High School in 1955. He attended the University of Nevada, Reno, where he was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity, and went on to study law at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Hastings in 1962. That same year he was admitted to the Nevada state bar, followed by admission to the California bar in 1963 and the Arizona bar in 1966, establishing the professional foundation for his subsequent legal and judicial career.

After completing law school and bar admissions, Santini served in the United States Army from 1963 to 1966. Following his military service, he embarked on a series of legal and judicial positions in Clark County, Nevada. He served consecutively as deputy district attorney of Clark County from 1966 to 1968, Clark County public defender from 1968 to 1970, and Las Vegas justice of the peace from 1970 to 1972. He then became a district court judge of Clark County, serving from 1972 to 1974. During this period, from 1969 to 1974, he was also the owner and a teacher of the Nevada Bar Review, reflecting his engagement with legal education and professional training.

Santini entered national politics in 1974, when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat, unseating incumbent Republican David Towell. He took office on January 3, 1975, as the representative for Nevada’s at-large congressional district and served four consecutive terms until January 3, 1983. In Congress, Santini compiled a moderate-to-conservative voting record and won reelection by overwhelming margins, participating actively in the democratic process during a period marked by post-Watergate reforms, economic challenges, and evolving federal policy. His tenure coincided with Nevada’s rapid growth and the increasing national prominence of the state’s tourism and gaming industries, whose interests he helped to represent at the federal level.

In 1982, Santini sought higher office and ran for the United States Senate. He entered the Democratic primary against incumbent Senator Howard Cannon and was narrowly defeated. Cannon subsequently lost the general election to former state senator Chic Hecht. The 1982 election cycle also marked a structural change in Nevada’s representation in the House of Representatives: reapportionment following the 1980 census granted Nevada a second congressional seat. As a result, Santini was the last person to represent the entire state in a single at-large House district. Beginning with the 1982 congressional election, Nevada was represented by Democrat Harry Reid in the newly created 1st Congressional District and Republican Barbara Vucanovich in the newly created 2nd Congressional District.

After his House service and the 1982 Senate primary, Santini remained active in politics. In 1986, he switched to the Republican Party and ran for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring Senator Paul Laxalt. He won the Republican nomination easily but lost the general election to Democrat Harry Reid by 14,349 votes. This campaign marked his final bid for elective office, closing a political career that had spanned local judicial service and four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Following his departure from elective office, Santini remained in Washington, D.C., and established a career as a lobbyist. He represented a number of tourism-related corporations and organizations, reflecting both his Nevada background and his legislative experience. Among his major clients was the National Tour Association (NTA), which retained him as legislative counsel on government issues related to the national and international tourism industry. Santini served as the federal legislation and regulation representative for NTA in Washington, D.C., beginning in 1983, and became a prominent advocate for policies affecting travel and tourism.

Santini also appeared occasionally in popular media. In 1990, he and his family were contestants on the nighttime version of the television game show Family Feud. A decade earlier, in 1980, one of his aides had appeared on the series and mentioned Santini’s name several times; host Richard Dawson made light of the Abscam sting operation during the episode’s opening segment, and the aide affirmed that Santini was not involved and was a “good guy.” The aide’s family ultimately lost that game to the returning champions, but the episode underscored Santini’s public profile during his congressional years.

James David Santini died on September 22, 2015, in Rockville, Maryland, from esophageal cancer at the age of 78. His papers are preserved in the Special Collections of the University Libraries at the University of Nevada, Reno, documenting his legal, judicial, legislative, and lobbying careers and his role in Nevada and national politics in the late twentieth century.