"The only place you could lose more money than the Las Vegas gambling tables was by watching the Democrats, because they're going to raise taxes on everybody," he said to applause.

Attendees at the various rallies, some of whom made it to multiple events, were excited at the opportunity for Elko to play a role in the election and give everyone, young and old, a real-life civics lesson.

Carolyn Bowers, Elko, attended Clinton's rally with her 12-year-old granddaughter, Amy. Bowers said she hadn't made a decision about whom to support, which was why she planned on attending Obama's town hall meeting as well.

"This is a great opportunity for my granddaughter to see how politics works," Bowers said.

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Contributing: Lisa Riley Roche

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E-mail: araymond@desnews.com