Mark Amodei

Jon Ralston has reported in Ralston's Flash that state Sen. Mark Amodei (R-Carson City) has resigned his post as head of the Nevada Mining Association ahead of the special session set to begin Monday.

The arrangement of Amodei working as a lobbyist while serving as a state senator is legal, but has long been criticized by the media as inappropriate.

With GOP presidential candidates largely ignoring the Nevada presidential caucus on Saturday -- Ron Paul is the only Republican scheduled to be in the state this week -- the contest may offer some evidence as to the value of endorsements in a race that may be wide open. Here's a list of our GOP stakeholders, along with their percentage in the Reno Gazette-Journal poll - which suggests the possibility of a four-way contest on the Republican side: